Fresh out of Octo Canyon
by OctoReader
Summary: An octoling named Christine escapes the hypnotized octarian army and is thrust into the confusing city of Inkopolis! After making a few friends and a lot of enemies, Christine is determined to show Inkopolis that she can be just as successful regardless of her race. Picture cred to TamarinFrog.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello! It's Octoreader! I've tried writing some fanfiction on this site and got pretty far with a D and D fic but Splatoon makes up the majority of what I read. I'm kinda new to this so my grammar is crappy so please be understanding. I also typically have my chapters over a thousand words but I am doing considerably less this time around. I think it will give me more incentive to write and I think people will appreciate consistent updates. Also, please review! I really appreciate them and suggestions help make my work better! :) So, without further ado, I give you my story!**

Well the day has finally arrived.

The sunlight was almost overwhelming on my face but I smiled knowing that it finally was time to put my past behind me.

My name is Christine. I'm an octoling and believe it or not I'm in Inkopolis! It's so exciting to me!

It was all thanks to that old man. I remember it like it was yesterday...

It was during the days of aimless wandering in Octo Canyon after I escaped the hypnotized octarian army that I stumbled upon his shack. At first site of him I panicked. I had never seen an actual inkling before and pointed my octoshot at him but to my surprise he didn't even make a move to splat me. He simply said, "Oh-ho bucko! No need for harm here! I can see your not like the other ones! Nothing to fear!"

I wasn't buying it. "Is this some kind of Inkling trick? What makes you so sure I won't splat you?" I said, not lowering my octoshot.

"Well for one, you don't have those glasses," he said as he adjusted his cap and motioned toward my head which indeed had no hypno shades. I took those things off a long time ago. "And also I see no hatred in your eyes. You're scared of me aren't you?" questioned the old man. I didn't respond. If there's one thing I knew in my life, it's not to show weakness. I simply stood unmoving with my octoshot trained on his chest.

"You don't have a place to stay do you?" said the old man ignoring my silence.

Again I did not respond. However, what he said was correct. I had no idea where to go. I looked around. Nothing but rocks for miles around.

"Listen we're civilized cephalopods aren't we? Why don't we discuss this over some Crabby Cakes?" I swear his eyes got twice as big at the mention of crabby cakes,whatever that was. I was surprised. I didn't know what to think. I lowered my octoshot.

"What's your name bucko?" asked the old man.

"Christine," I responded trying to ignore my stomach's loud growls at the thought of food.

"Well, Christine. Let's go to my cabin shall we." replied the old man as he turned to leave toward an odd looking shack not bothering to see if I was following him.

A few moments later I was stuffing my face in these crabby cake things. I hadn't eaten in a while and they were sure better than rations. After nearly gorging myself the old man asked me, "So what brings you here to this part of Octo Canyon anyway?"

My face became glum. "Well you see, almost all the octolings in Octo Canyon have been hypnotized." I responded while staring at the cabin floor. "I managed to trip and break my glasses by accident and run away but now…" I began to cry. "I don't know what to do! I can't go back or the octarians will hypnotize me again! I don't know where to go!" I turned to look at the old man and saw an expression of sheer pitty. All my suspicion of him left me. He truly felt sorry for me and wanted to help.

"I knew something was up with what Octavio was doing with the octolings. I just didn't know it was this bad." whispered the old man softly.

"The other octarians are too dimwitted. They do whatever Octavio tells them to," I replied sadly.

"Bucko, I know this is weird of me to ask but you could stay here for awhile. It's safer here." stated the old man as he gestured around the cabin.

I looked at the inkling like he was crazy. "Y-you would really do that for me." I said as more tears flowed down my cheeks. It didn't make sense. He had no reason to help me.

"Kid, I'm old enough to remember the days when our races used to be friends and I long for them back." replied the old man, "Just because your leader has decided to be enemies with my race doesn't mean I have to."

Before I knew what was happening I embraced the old man in a hug. After a few seconds I mentioned, "I never asked for your name."

"Cuttlefish. Captain Cuttlefish."


	2. Chapter 2

**I'm back at it again with another chapter. Enjoy everyone!**

Well, in short, Captain Cuttlefish and I became great friends. We both were infatuated with old weapon designs used in the great turf war and we both really enjoyed crabby cakes. Besides, deep inside, we both longed for company. Cuttlefish didn't get visitors often to Octo Canyon and I hadn't seen anyone who wasn't hypnotized in cod knows how long.

Well one day over lunch, Cuttlefish asked me a question,

"Bucko, would you like to live up in the surface in the city?"

I practically jumped out of my seat, "WHHHAAAATTT?!"

"Well," the inkling explained, "it doesn't feel right to keep you down here when there is a whole world up there."

The surface. I occasionally dreamed about it. A place where you could feel the sun beat on your skin. A place you could feel the wind against your ears. A place where the only limt was the sky.

"But what would the inklings think of me? I could be splatted on the spot!"

"That shouldn't be too much of a problem. If you act like you know what you are doing, the other inklings probably won't bother you." replied Cuttlefish.

"Besides," said Cuttlefish, "there are a few octolings in Inkapolis already."

"How many?" I asked.

"Not too much." said Cuttlefish "They don't look like your typical octolings so most inklings assume there tentacles are some sort of fashion statement."

I was curious, "What do you mean? Not typical?"

"Well one of the celebrities is an elite and one of the agents is a younger octoling so their tentacles are shorter and less pronounced." said Cuttlefish as he gnawed on a crabby cake.

I was a bit scared of the prospect.

"I've always wanted to see the surface but its just so risky." I said.

"Well if things go south your always welcome her bucko!" replied Cuttlefish with a grin.

"Okay, I'll do it!" I said enthusiastically. Going to the surface was an octarians dream. I'd be a fool to squander the opportunity.

Cuttlefish stroked his beard and said, "Well let me see if I can find you some more proper clothes."

* * *

The next morning, I found myself in a yellow T-shirt and shorts that were slightly big on me along with a sack of 5000 coins in inkling currency.

"These were my clothes as a wee lad!" said Cuttlefish enthusiastically.

Cuttlefish then led me to a manhole cover.

"Now let me check if the coast is clear and you can shift into your octopus form and jump out. Whatever happens just stay calm and walk with purpose." instructed Cuttlefish.

I nodded my head. "Thank you Cuttlefish, for everything," I said as I embraced him in a hug.

"Good luck out there kid. You better jump now." said Cuttlefish as he pointed to the grate.

I took a deep breath, turned into an octopus, and jumped.

As I jumped out of the grate, I was immediately greeted to a awe inspiring site. I looked around me and found I was in the middle of a bustling square. I could feel the wind on my skin. I could see the sun. It was amazing.

It's time to start my new life.

That's what I was thinking as I took my first careful steps into the square.

 **What do ya think? Tell me in a review.**


	3. Chapter 3

**I decided to make this chapter longer than usual. Enjoy!**

Inkopolis was breathtaking. So much noise and bustle all in one place. So many colors… -

However, my sightseeing was interrupted when I noticed that a bunch of inklings were staring at my dumbfonded self with suspicious looks. I immediately tensed up. If I wanted to stay here I had to act like I belonged here. Then, perhaps, they would assume I was allowed here and wouldn't bother me. I mean was there really any legal standpoint to me not being allowed here? Captain Cuttlefish never told me anything about a police force or something and from what I heard it doesn't seem like inklings had anything resembling a government.

I shoved the thought out of my head and began to walk through the square and tried to ignore many of the hostile and confused expressions on the inkling's faces. I had to admire how different inklings looked from one another. All their tentacles were different colors and were styled in all sorts of shapes and styles. Plus their were males, a lot of them actually. There were hardly any in Octo Valley. The chances of an octoling being born a male were astronomical.

I began to have second thoughts about being in such a heavily populated area so I decided to walk into one of the shops dotting the square. I was taken aback of how empty it was. I didn't even see a shopkeeper. The only thing I did notice were the hats. Lots and lots and of hats. Shelves of them. I reasoned it must be a hat store.

"Hello?" I said.

No one responded. I reasoned there was no one here...or so I thought.

"Ah hello, little Octopus. I sensed your nervous aura before you even stepped in."

I gasped and found seemingly out of nowhere the shop owner was behind me! She seemed to be a sea slug of some sort with a crayfish rested on her head.

The seaslug seemed to have sensed my surprise and began to giggle. "Do not worry little octopus, you do not have anything to fear from me. My name is Flow"

"H-hello. I'm Christine." I said nervously.

"Now, little octopus, would you like to by some gear?" Flow asked.

I guess maybe I was still in shock at Flow's strange way of speaking or maybe I was just nervous but either way I responded in the dumbest possible fashion, "Uh, not really?"

Flow closed her eyes for a second as if what I said required some sort of additional processing or analysis. After a few seconds she opened them, "Little octopus, your aura is nervous. You seem to be lost and unsure."

I looked at Flow in awe. She pretty much hit the nail on the head. Was she psychic or something? Could she really sense my "aura"? I was too stunned to respond.

"Little octopus, I sense you are scared of most of the residents of the city. Your afraid they won't accept you."

What the shell?! This sea slug was reading me like a book. Her words carried wisdom though. Her voice was that of one who is trying to teach a lesson. I stood there and listened.

"I understand how you are feeling. What you need are friends and to find friends you must seek out people."

"But none of the inklings want me here!" I blurted out. I was being stupid. I was giving my feelings to a total stranger but it didn't feel that way. It felt like Flow understood what I was going through and wanted to help.

"You are only looking at the surface little octopus. You must find those who will accept you."

"And where will I find those kinds of people?" I asked wide-eyed.

Flow smiled. "Not in here little octopus." she teased. "Go and seek out those people."

Flow then went to a shelf and the crayfish on her head nabbed a small box and Flow approached me. The crayfish then extended its arms towards me, expecting me to take it.

"Please, take this. It's my gift to you." said Flow.

I opened the box. In it was a pink mesh hat that looked to be of very fine quality.

"T-this if for me?" I asked.

"Of course, but come back here when you wish to purchase gear. All right?"

"Thank you!" I exclaimed gratefully. It was incredibly kind of her to do this for me considering I essentially was loitering in her store.

Flow motioned toward the door. "Now go little octopus! Find those who will give you hope and love."

I then stepped out the door to do just that. No longer fearful but hopeful.

 **Well, this chapter was fun to do! I tried exploring Flow as a character a bit. WHich was interesting since she doesn't have such a huge effect on Splatoon's characters or story. However, I felt Christine needed guidance and I think flow was the perfect one to help her considering the sunken scrolls suggest Flow moved to Inkapolis.**


	4. Chapter 4

I put on my the mesh cap and walked confidently into the square, ignoring most of the dirty and nervous looks I got. I noticed a few inklings at a table looking at their phones. When they saw me they immediately stopped what they were doing and started whispering to each other.

I then decided to walk around the city. I still needed time to properly take in the vastness and beauty of all it. I went everywhere. I went through the alleys, walked through all the streets, and even decided to do everything all again for the heck of it. The whole city was amazing, everything from the vast skyscrapers to the colorful graffiti on the walls. Everything pulsed with life and color.

I eventually decided to take a break from all the walking and stop on a bench in a small park. It was getting late and the sun illuminated the park in a soft orange glow. I couldn't believe I was seeing an actual sunset! I heard rumors about the sun in Octo Valley. A great bright ball of light that was so bright, it hurt to look at. A ball that warmed the Earth. A ball that made life possible.

Looking at the sun now was more than I ever dreamed. I sighed and closed my eyes. I was content.

"How unfresh."

I opened my eyes to find what looked like a rather tall female inkling with her green hair wrapped in a bun who was no more than a couple feet away. She wore a pair of thin glasses that glinted in the sunlight and I soon realized their were about two inkling girls flanking her.

"Unfresh?" I said to myself as I tasted the unfamiliar slang.

"Yeah, pretty unfresh, even for an octoling." said the tall Inkling. I noticed the two inklings behind her began giggling uncontrollably. This inkling was making fun of me.

"What made you crawl out from your cave octoling?" mocked the tall inkling.

This inkling had some nerve. Did she have any idea at what I had been through to get here? Did she know what it was like to have all her friends hypnotized? Of course not. I was beginning to get very angry and was resisting the urge to punch the inkling in the face but getting into a spat could easily label me as "some octoling attacking the populace" and would ruin my chances of staying up here. So I said the next best thing, "Buzz off. I'm here whether you like it or not."

I suddenly found myself grabbed by the tentacle and thrust to the ground. The tall inkling was on top of me and her face looked furious.

"Now you listen to me you little octarian scum. If you think you can just waltz into Inkopolis like your one of us your wrong." said the tall inkling as she continued pulling by the tentacle. Then I felt a hand reach into my pocket and to my horror I realized she pulled out my sack of coins.

"Oh, now what's this? Did you steal it?" said the inkling.

"N-no." I responded meekly.

The inkling then turned around and threw the sack into a nearby pond.

"NOOOOO!" I screamed. All that money was gone. Completely and utterly gone. Now I would have no way to pay for food, housing, or anything in general.

I felt the grip on me release and I began to sob.

"Do as all a favor and go back underground where you belong." said the inkling as she walked away with her two friends in tow.

It was all over for me. I would not be able to afford living up here. I looked around the park, there was no one here. No one that wanted to help me. Flow said to find people who would love me and now I have nothing. I was stupid to expect the inklings to accept me. I sobbed silently and climbed onto the bench. I was too tired and upset to think anymore. I layed down and went into a dreamless sleep for all my dreams were shattered.

 **Well it looks like this story never had a happy ending for Christine...JUST KIDDING:) You think I'm a monster and would end on such a sad scene. Shame one you. I will indeed continue this. Please let me know what you think of the story so far. I would love to hear your suggestions. Also if you have an OC you would like to add let me know and I might just put them in the story ;) Now I can't promise when or if I'll put them in but I'll try. Stay fresh!**


	5. Chapter 5

**PLOT TWIST! I'm switching perspective's with an entirely new character this chapter.**

?'s P.O.V

So this is what an octoling looks like. Weird. I thought they'd look different. Y'know, like, fiercer or something.

Oh, yeah, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Jessie, the freshest squid in Inkapolis Square!

…..

Okay. That would be a slight exaggeration. I'm not unfresh or anything but I'm definitely not the freshest. Just another squid hoping to make it big in turf wars

Well, anyways, I was hanging out with my BFF Sasha at Crusty Seans today and as we got our usual and sat down I noticed something that almost made me spit out my drink.

"Who is that?!" I exclaimed to Sasha.

Sasha then turned to look at the figure I was pointing two. It was a figure that looked much like an inkling girl but with a few differences. She had rounded ears, different markings on her eyes, and a bunch of red suckered tentacles on her head. Could it be what I thought it was?

Well, while I almost spit out my drink Sasha did and spewed orange juice all over the table. "Oh my God Jessie, I think that's an octoling." whispered Sasha as she stood up in her chair ready to leave. Sasha's actions confused me. We obviously weren't in any danger. I mean, yeah, it looks like an octoling but she's wearing inkling clothes and she appeared more interested in her surroundings than splatting anyone.

"Sasha, chill. Were not in any danger." I said while I sipped my drink in indifference.

"She's probably plotting to splat us at this very moment!" said Sasha frantically as she tugged her green tentacles.

I could kinda understand why Sasha was worried but seriously this octoling practically wasn't even looking at us or anyone for that matter. She seemed to just be looking up at the sky with this odd awed expression.

While Sasha was frantic I was curious. What **was** this octoling doing in Inkopolis? Did she know anybody? Had she ever even seen the sky? Is that why she kept looking at it that way?

I never saw an octoling up close before. The closest I heard about them was from bedtime stories and history books about the Great Turf War. I honestly thought they all died off underground or something.

"Well, I'm going to follow her and figure this out." I announced.

"Are you crazy Jessie? She'll probably splat you if she sees your following her!" Sasha practically screamed.

"Fine, while you be a wuss, **I'm** going to get to the bottom of this" I retorted and despite Sasha's pleas I walked off to follow the octoling.

Throughout the day I followed her. I followed through the square, I followed her through the alley, and eventually stopped behind a tree as I saw the octoling had stopped to rest at a bench.

Despite, what Sasha said this octoling didn't look like it was planning some sneak attack on Inkopolis. She just seemed to be taking in the sights. So much for planning to splat all of us.

Eventually, I heard a scream and saw that some tall inkling had pinned the octoling to the ground. I thought about helping but it would be kinda of weird coming out from behind a tree and saying, "Well hi there! I just was stalking you the entire day. Let me help you." Besides, there were two other inklings behind this tall one so my chances of being able to do anything were pretty slim.

I then heard a splash and saw that the tall inkling had thrown a sack of some sort into the nearby pond. The octoling was obviously not happy about that and began to cry. I then saw the inkling get off of the octoling and leave. The octoling then cried some more, looked around, and slept right there on the bench.

I stood stunned at the heart wrenching scene. This octoling was practically assaulted and I didn't do anything about it. I just watched. I'm such a coward.

Also, why was the octoling just sleeping on a park bench. Surely she had someplace to crash at. Right? It didn't add up. Then it occured to me, maybe the octoling doesn't have anywhere to go. I then came out of my hiding spot and cursed myself for what I was about to do.

She was fast asleep. I had a pull out mattress at my place. Maybe, if was careful, I could bring her to my house for the night without waking her up. It's all I could do for being such a piece of seaweed by letting her get bullied like that. I took a deep breath and proceeded to pick up the octoling.

She slept like a rock. Then she began to move and I tensed up, worrying she was going to wake up, but instead she clutched my torso much like a baby would do to its mom. I then felt a dramatic drop in weight and saw that the octoling transformed into what looked like...her squid form? No, it was a small octopus. I guess octolings can transform into a cephalopod form to.

It was dark so I managed to get her over to my house without anyone noticing. I then pulled out my couch and put a blanket over the octopus and went to sleep.

 **If any one has an idea for an OC leave it in a review.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Christine's P.O.V**

I woke up feeling warm and comfortable.

Oh my cod, I just want to lie here in bed and sift through the warm fluffy blankets…

Wait BLANKETS?! BED?!

I snapped my eyes open and survey my surroundings. I'm laying on a couch in a small room. There's what looks like a television set, posters plastered everywhere, and an inkling sitting in a chair at the other side of the room. Actually, sitting was the wrong word for it, she was snoring loudly as her body was slumped over the chair. The inkling had purple tentacles and a white headband that was so undone it looked like it was going to fall off.

But this was the least of my concerns. What the shell happened last night? Last thing I remember was getting robbed and falling asleep on a bench. I had no memory of being here. It was all so confusing.

I slowly got out of the bed and silently tiptoed toward the purple inkling sleeping in the chair. Then I gently shook her awake.

"Huhhhh...wazzit...Ah!" the inkling retracted, startled at my sudden appearance and the chair she was seated on fell over as she jumped back in surprise.

"Uh, are you all right?" I said nervously. Not sure how to react.

The inkling looked up at me as if remembering something. "Oh yeah. Sorry about that! You just startled me that's all!" she said as she pulled herself up from the floor and turned to face me.

I gave the inkling a confused look. I really didn't know what to say. This was all just so weird and confusing.

The inkling then took a deep breath and said, "Okay, so I know this is kinda awkward since we hardly know each other but my name's Jessie! I found you asleep last night and you looked lost so I decided to take you here."

I just stared at the inkling. I wanted to thank her I really did but I just didn't know what to say. I haven't said a word to any inklings besides Captain Cuttlefish let alone been this close to one.

"Oookkaaayyy," said Jessie as she scratched her head, "I see your not very talkitive but I found this next to you." The inkling picked something up on the floor and handed it to me. It was the mesh hat Flow gave to me.

"Why?" I blurted out. The suddenness of the statement surprised even me. I guess maybe it was the hat that did it or maybe I just was sick of being confused.

"Say what?" said Jessie as she squinted in confusion.

"Why are you doing this?" I questioned. "You don't even know me and I'm an octoling for cod's sake!"

Jessie looked at me for a second and said, "Because it's the right thing to do plus it looks like you need some help in the terms of freshness."

Again, what did the word "fresh" even mean. This weird slang was starting to drive me nuts.

"Um, I never asked for your name." asked Jessie with her hand extended in greeting .

"Oh, I'm Christine. It's a pleasure to meet you." I responded and shook her hand. I then heard a loud growl that practically shook the whole room.

"Oof, that would be my stomach." said the inkling as she clutched her stomach. "Why don't we discuss this over some breakfast?" the inkling stated.

A few moments later, I found myself eating all these new and unusual foods. I still haven't gotten used to what inklings eat. Eggs, bacon, and hashbrowns were all unfamiliar to me but tasted great nonetheless.

"These tastes amazing! Thank you!" I said as I digged into a third helping of eggs.

After a few moments of eating Jessie said, "So, how long have you been in Inkopolis?"

"One day." I said plainly. Jessie gawked at me with a stupefied expression and dropped her fork on the table.

"Holy crow! Your new!" she exclaimed. "So all of this is all unfamiliar to you?"

"Well," I said, "I would be lying if I said no. It's all so intimidating." I said as I pushed away my plate. I was full.

"So do you have a place to stay yet? Are you going to a hotel or something?" asked the inkling excitedly as if she were already planning a visit.

I frowned. Not after losing all my money in the bottom of the pond. "I don't have any money. I was robbed" I said glumly.

"Oh," the inkling said as her smile faded, "I'm sorry, I didn't know."

I hated seeing this inkling upset. She had been so kind to me. "It's fine. I'll get." by I said."

The inkling looked at me with a serious expression, "That's impossible! Your not going to be able to do that!" she screamed.

This inkling had a point. The reality had sunk in again. I was going to have to leave inkopolis. I wouldn't be able to afford life up here. I felt a tear trickle down my cheek.

The inkling noticed. Damnit.

"Hey listen, I'm sorry I didn't meant to scare you." she apologized.

"No, it's not your fault," I started, but more tears were coming,"It's just when these inklings took my money. They said...they said.."

I was full on sobbing at this point. I couldn't help it. "They said to go back underground where I belong and now I'll have to do just that!" I continued, "I really was stupid to come up here. I'll just-"

I never finished my sentence. The inkling ran up to me and embraced me in a hug. She said nothing. She only rocked me gently and allowed me to cry myself out. It was odd being hugged by a total stranger but at this point I didn't care. I needed to cry for a while.

After I had cried myself out, Jessie released me and said, "All better?"

"Y-yeah." I sniffed.

"Listen, I've been thinking. Why don't you stay here?" Jessie said as she sat back in her chair.

Was this inkling insane? She just helped a total stranger, let her break down in her house like a baby, and now she's offering her a place to stay. No. I would not trouble her anymore. I can never stand up for myself. Whenever, someone has helped me I've always failed. I've always let someone down whether it was Cuttlefish or Flow. I'm not making that mistake again.

I slammed my hands on the table. "No," I said firmly.

"Why not?" she said as she cocked her head in question.

"I appreciate your help. I really do but you've just done so much for me and I would just be a burden." I said as I smiled politely.

The inkling looked at me with a shocked expression and suddenly asked, "Christine, do you know how to turf?"

I was taking aback by the question, "In the octarian army I learned how to turf, why?"

"I had an idea, my friends and I need a fourth member on our squad."

"A squad?" I asked.

"For turf wars." Jessie responded, "It's a sport that inklings do to earn money."

I gave her a confused look. She sighed and said, "We had a member of our squad ditch us lately and now we need a new me or Judd will kick us out of the circuit."

Jessie smiled at me, "Please stay. It would actually be a big help" she said. "We'll split the rent."

I hesitated. This inkling is offering me a lifeline to stay here. If I joined her squad I could become useful and pull my own weight. Maybe, I could do it. I've come too far not to try.

"Yes,"

 **Well, this chapter took way longer than usual. I finally linked Christine and Jessy together and now the main plot can beging. Let me know what you all think. Let me know if you have any ideas!**


	7. Chapter 7

**So I've gotten a few complaints about my spelling and** **grammar. I realized that I may want to revisit previous chapters and give them a few edits as not to screw up the flow of the story. Really appreciate it that people are pointing this out. Please tell me what you think!**

 **Christine's P.O.V**

The next afternoon was full of me getting the just of the apartment learning some ground rules. I would help Jessie with her turf war team and we would use our winnings to cover rent.

"I have to show you my team." said Jessie as she adjusted her headband in the mirror, "They're really nice."

After Jessie finished fiddling with her headband, she pointed to my clothes and said, "Y'know you could really use some fresher gear before meeting my squad." Again with the term "fresh"? What the shell did that word mean.

"I've heard that word so much lately. What does it mean?" I asked.

"Fresh is a term used to describe being fashionable or cool." Jessie stated plainly.

"So are you meaning to say I'm unfresh?" I inquired as if I were a little offended.

"No, no, no!" said Jessie shaking her hands, "Like for instance, your hat, **that's** pretty fresh."

I looked up to my head realizing she meant my mesh cap flow gave me. I guess Flow really took her time in choosing which hat to get me.

"Well, maybe after we do some turf and your rank increases we can buy you some more gear but for now you can use some of my clothes." said Jessie.

"Wait, rank?" I asked.

"Y'know what? I'll explain later." Jessie stated.

All of this slang and new terms were getting to be too much. I'm not sure if I'll ever truly fit in here. Everything is just so different.

"Hey, I know this is a lot of information to process in only a few days." said Jessie as if sensing my confusion.

"Well, no one told me that this was going to be easy." I laughed.

"Well, how about I give you the grand tour with my friends!" said Jessie as she bounced uncontrollably throughout the house in excitement. Honestly, this inkling was practically a beam of sunshine.

* * *

 **Jessie's P.O.V**

I lead Christine out of the house. I've just got to introduce her to my friends! Sasha will…!

Oops. Sasha.

I mentally facepalmed as I completely forgot of how Sasha practically flipped her tentacles after first seeing Christine. Introducing her as a friend would be difficult.

"Hey,"

I was snapped out of my train of thought as I heard Christine call me.

"H-hey, I just wanted to say thank you so much for everything. I hope I haven't been a burden."

I smiled, "Of course not." I was surprised of how worried this octoling was about being rude or whatever. She had no money and she nearly refused housing out of politeness! I mean how well mannered can someone get?

I lead Christine toward the square of Inkopolis. I actually got quite a lot of odd looks from most of the inklings we past. I then realize how weird I must look, holding hands with an enemy of my race like it was commonplace, but I didn't see it that way. I don't know why Christine came to Inkopolis but it was a pretty brave thing to do. I can respect that and it must be so hard for her to adjust to this. If I get a few stares from some strangers then so be it.

I hurried over to my meeting spot with Sasha with Christine in tow and sat down beside Crusty Sean's food truck. It looks like Sasha was not here yet.

Then, I noticed Christine wrinkling her nose and looking around.

"What's that smell?" says Christine confused.

Okay, sorry, this is too much. I bursted into laughter. The octoling gave me a confused look.

"It's _**food**_! Have you ever had fried food before." I say as I wipe a few tears from my face. Wow, I was laughing hard. "We'll get some in a second." I say, "Just let me text my friend so I can see where he is." I open up my squidphone and go onto messaging:

 _JessieIsBoss99: Hey Sasha, where r u?_

 _SashaoftheDEEP: Coming._

 _JessieIsBoss99:I have a new member for the squad._

 _SashaofthDEEP: AWESOME! Who is it?_

 _JessieisBoss99: It's better if I show you in person._

 _SashaoftheDEEP: Why?_

 _Jessieisboss99: Trust me on this. Just promise to not freak out._

 _SashaoftheDEEP: OK. What's this about?_

 _Jessieisboss99: Don't worry about it. See ya._

 _SashaoftheDEEP: Okkkkaaayyyyyy. I guess?_

I sighed and put away my phone. "Hey Christine,"

"Yeah," she responded.

"Listen, my friend is really nice but he doesn't really know your an octoling so he may be a little bit nervous."

I hope Sasha would take this well. The last thing Christine would need is another xenophobic inkling interacting with her. I was wondering if this was a good idea.

"Jessie!" a familiar and friendly voice called out. I looked over and saw Sasha who was his usual cheerful self with a big smile on his face...until he saw Christine.

Oops.

 **Well I've decided to consistently switch perspectives from Christine and Jessie to give the reader a feel for their personalities or feelings. Well it looks like Jessie has a lot of explaining to do for Sasha. Will it work? Will Sasha accept Christine on the squad? Will Christine be able to comfortably adjust to life on the surface? Until next time...stay fresh!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Jessie's P.O.V:**

 **Jeez I haven't updated this in forever! Please forgive me. This chapter is a tad bit short but I'll be updating more soon! Thank you all for the continued support!**

Sasha's mouth gaped as she looked at me and then the octoling sitting next to me.

Okay, first try.

"Hey, Sasha, don't freak out. Let's-"

"ARE YOU INSANE?!" Sasha practically screamed at me. Okay, if no one was looking at me and Christine before, they sure were now. I could feel about a hundred eyes staring at us.

"Sasha," I said calmly, "Your going to make a scene, you-"

"YOU INVITED AN **OCTOLING** ON THE TEAM?!" Sasha screamed again. I noticed some inklings were getting up to leave. Crusty Sean looked wide eyed from his trailer at the intensifying scene.

I noticed Christine was looking increasingly nervous as Sasha continued to rant. I had to resolve this situation quickly.

"Sasha," I said repeated as I tried to get her attention.

But Sasha continued, "I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS WE'RE GOING TO-"

"Sasha!" I yelled. Sasha immediately stopped as I gave her my seriously-stop-being-such-a-sea-sponge look.

"Listen Sasha, your voice just practically splatted everyone here." I said as I motioned to all the empty tables around us. Sasha then looked around realizing that there was indeed no one here.

Sasha then stammered, "S-Sorry, Jessie I didn't realize…"

Sasha looked as if she were about to cry. I realized I may have been a bit harsh on her. Actually, Christine looked like she was going to cry herself after Sasha's crazy rant as she was visibly shaking in her seat.

I dropped my serious demeanor as I comforted Sasha, "Yo Sasha, it's okay let's just go discuss this over some food." Actually, that was a good idea, considering we just scared all of Crusty Sean's customers off, the least we could do would be to give him some business.

"But first," I announced, "You owe Christine an apology for screaming about her like that."

At first Sasha looked at Christine than at me as if he didn't know what to do. Avoiding eye contact, with Christine, she grudgingly muttered, "Sorry..." Christine simply nodded. Welp, it's a start I guess.

I then placed gave Crusty Sean our order and sat back down as I heard the delicious sound of him frying our food for us.

"So listen, Sasha, it's my turn to talk," I stated. "Christine is new to the surface and is living with me for the time being."

Sasha's eyed widened a bit at that last part but she said nothing.

I continued, "Since, our team needs a new member I thought she could join our squad and help me pay rent in return for living with me."

Sasha said nothing as if she wasn't sure what to say. We all sat in silence for a bit but it was soon interrupted by Crusty Sean announcing our order was done. I thanked him and gave him an extra large tip for the trouble. I sat back down and handed everyone their food. I started to eat but soon stopped as I found nobody else was eating. Sasha and Christine were just staring at each other.

I was trying to come up with a plan to break the ice between them but before I could say anything someone spoke up.

"Hey,"

It was Christine.

 **Aye, Octoreader again! It looks like Christine is finally speaking out for herself. What will she say? And will Sasha overcome her xenophobia of octolings. Anyways, I had an idea, I honestly haven't come up with any idea for the 4th member of Jessie's team. So I thought, why not make it a CONTEST! Send me an idea of an inkling with tentacle, color, name, and traits and I may put them in the story! Just PM me!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Octoreader here! I noticed I haven't gotten a lot of entries for the OC contest (refer to last chapter) but just send me an inkling's name, hair color, and personality and I may add them to Jessie's squad! May the best inkling win!**

 **Christine's P.O.V:**

Not only does Jessie's friend hate me but now I'm on a squad with her? I thought her friends were nice. After this inkling's freakout, I just wanted to get up and leave. This inkling simply hated me so what was the point of even interacting with her? All we did was sit in awkward silence with each other.

But getting up and leaving wasn't an option. If I wanted to uphold my part of the bargain for having Jessie let me stay at her place than I needed to somehow get along with Sasha.

"Hey," I said to Sasha.

The inkling looked up. Jessie stared at me in amazement. Perhaps, she was surprised I was bold enough to speak with Sasha.

I continued "Let's not kid ourselves here, you hate me because I'm an octoling."

Sasha said nothing and only stared.

"I came up to the surface to live here like you and I understand why your scared of me but you don't need to be."

The inkling continued to just blankly stare at me.

"I'm just as scared of you as you are of me." I said. I gave a sort of sad smile and added, "It's scary to be in a new place where everyone hates you."

Jessie still continued to give me this amazed look as if I had just given a presidential address and much to my surprise...Sasha said something.

"I'm sorry."

I couldn't hear her. "What?" I asked.

"I shouldn't have done that to you. I should've yelled like that."

"It's okay." I said.

"No it's not," the inkling interrupted. "It was wrong of me to make you feel scared and hated like everyone else here. I'm just contributing to a problem."

Jessie shifted her amazed look from me to Sasha. The inkling continued, "I'm still not sure if I can trust you but I want to give you a chance."

It really really meant so much to hear that. It really did.

"Thank you. It means a lot." I responded.

"Well, I've got to go. I need some time to process this." said Sasha as she picked up her food and left without another.

As soon as she was out of site, Jessie immediately piped up, "OMG! Jessie I am so sorry! I had no idea that Sasha would react that way!"

OMG? What did that mean?

"It's okay. She apologized anyway." I said as I took a bite out of my food. It struck me back with how delicious it was. It was some fried concoction of whip cream, chocolate, and meat which sounds disgusting but actually tasted pretty delicious.

"What is this stuff anyway?" I asked mid-bite.

Jessie simply shrugged, "To be honest, I really don't know."

"So you inklings just eat whatever's put in front of you?" I laughed.

"Pretty much." Jessie responded as she dug into her food. "But it tastes good!" she added with a mouth full of food.

"You inklings are so weird."

"Same to you." Jessie laughed.

We both made stupid jokes while eating for the next hour until Jessie decided to give me the grand tour of inkopolis. I felt for once, content. Life was good.

 **?'s P.O.V:**

 **Cuttlefish's Shack:**

"Where's gramps?" asked Marie holding an umbrella.

"Don't know." said Callie. "He was saying he wanted to go out with agent 3 and 8 on some sort of research mission to keep an eye on the Deep Sea Metro."

"Ugh, I really needed to talk to him." responded Marie with a sigh.

"About what?" questioned Callie.

"It's this octoling that I saw in Inkopolis the other day. I didn't recognize her." responded Marie as she accidently swung her umbrella knocking over a pile of books with a loud crash.

"And?"

"Shouldn't we check on it? She's an octoling after all." said Marie as she muttered to herself about how gramps keeps too much stuff out in the open.

"But Marie, there already are octolings in Inkopolis." whined Callie.

"Two." responded Marie.

"But they're nice." protested Callie

"Cuttlefish knows Agent 8 personally and Marina's our friend." said Marie as she sat down and added, "Besides, Cuttlefish would have told us that there was an octoling roaming in Inkopolis wouldn't he."

"Maybe, he forgot." said Callie.

"As if dad forgets anything involving octarians. Let's go. I'm getting to the bottom of this." said Marie as she readied to super jump out to the grate.

"But Marie," Callie protested.

But it was too late. Marie had already super jumped through the grate.

"Stupid Marie, always so serious. She didn't even clean up this mess" pouted Callie as she looked at the pile of books on the floor. She then turned to follow suit and jumped out through the grate.

Little did she know that beneath a pile of old books was a letter from Cuttlefish.

 **Ahoy Buckos!**

 **I'm off with 1 on and 3 doing a little recon so I want be back for a wanted to tell you I befriended an octoling about a week ago. You may see her in the square. She's a fine lass and be sure to say hi!**

 **-Cuttlefish**

 **P.S: Callie don't eat my crabby cakes. I know you eat them when I'm gone.**

 **Aye guys it's Octoreader! It looks like Marie's carelessness may have caused a couple of problems! Anyways I hope you all our enjoying the story! Stay fresh!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10:**

 **I noticed that there still aren't any entries for the OC (original character) contest. It's a shame, but I'm not giving up yet! Just send me an inkling's name, hair color, and personality and I may add them to Jessie's squad as the fourth member! This is your chance to contribute to the story! Send me your unique and interesting characters!**

 **Christine's P.O.V:**

The rest of the day was incredible. Jessie showed me all around Inkopolis. Everything from Judd's sleeping spot to the turf war lobby. It still felt a little weird considering everyone kept whispering and staring at me but I had gotten used to it at this point. As we headed back home as night began to set and cover Inkopolis in darkness Jessie prompted, "So Christine, if you don't mind me asking, why did you go up to Inkopolis."

Hmm, wasn't expecting Jessie to ask that. Well I didn't really mind. I cleared my throat and stated plainly, "All the octolings there have been hypnotized by our leader and the other octarians are too simple minded to do anything so I left." The street lamps hadn't been turned on yet so it took me awhile to realize Jessie was no longer beside me. I turned around and to my surprise Jessie had stopped walking. She hung her head with her purple tentacles obscuring her eyes and her body was shaking violently. It took me a few seconds to realize she was crying.

"Hey, what's wrong?" I asked. I was confused. What was the inkling crying about?

"Th-that's h-horrible!" she said in between sobs as blobs of ink streamed down her cheeks.

"Why would you care?" I asked confused, "It doesn't matter now."

"H-how can you say that?" said Jessie as she continued to cry, "Aren't you scared to having to leave home behind to an unfamiliar place full of strangers."

"Of course I'm scared," I laughed, "but worrying about it won't make anything better." This inkling really baffled me. Being sentimental wasn't going to help me make friends, find a place to stay, or make a living in general. Being sad would just slow me down.

"Besides," I smiled, "I kinda like it up here."

Jessie stopped crying and looked at me, "You really must be brave to be like that. To not be sad or upset."

"I honestly am surprised why you are so worried about me," I said as I went over to wipe a stray tear off her cheek. "You inklings get emotional quickly."

"Sorry," sniffed Jessie, "It's just that what you said was so sad."

"Oh yeah?" I responded, "Well cheer up! I've gotta get home for some shut eye."

"Same," yawned Jessie.

I squinted as a sudden flash of bright light illuminated the square. The street lights were on. I gasped as I saw two figures who were peering out of an alley who were obviously trying not to be seen only to be revealed by the blazing street lights.

"For cod's sake Callie, I told you we should've done this in the day time where there were crowds but nooooo you had to do it at night!" said an inkling with odd grey tentacles and an umbrella.

"Forget that Marie, let's book it!" said an inkling with purple and black tentacles who soon super jumped away followed by her partner.

"What the heck was all that about." I asked as I adjusted my mesh cap to get a better view of the alley the inklings were standing in.

"Dunno, they looked kinda familiar to me though. It's at the tip of my tongue." said Jessie as if she were trying to remember some distant memory locked in her head.

"Whatever, I'm too tired to even think about it," I yawned. It really had been a long day.

"Yeah, let's get some sleep." Jessie replied.

And with that we went to Jessie's apartment. I put the mesh cap Flow gave me by the couch and went to bed.


	11. Chapter 11

**I'm Octoreader and WE HAVE A WINNER OF THE OC CONTEST! *rapa horn plays* This winner is Plutodragon for his or her splattastic squid! They will be feature next chapter. Anyways I hope everyone here is enjoying the story! Reviews are appreciated.  
**

 **Christine P.O.V:**

In my sleep, I had dreams. Bad ones. I dreamed I was being chased by my fellow octarians each with a pair of hypnoshades. I then dreamed I was lying restrained in a chair as an octoling forcibly put the shades on me and all I could do was let the world slip away into Octavio's hypnotic beats.

AH! I awoke with a start and realized I had thrown myself out of Jessie's couch. I took deep breaths to calm myself down. I was safe. I was in Jessie's house. I was alive.

After I had gotten my nerves back, I heard a distinct pattering sound from outside. I looked at the window and saw that there were drops of water hitting the window. Rain.

I had heard about rain in Octo Valley but had never truly seen it. It was almost mesmerizing as a seemingly endless stream of drops batted against the window in rhythm. As I stood facing the window, I saw a flash of light followed by an ear splitting crack that shook the room. I screamed in fear. Whatever that loud noise and light was it was not good. I had to warn Jessie.

I kicked the sticker plastered door to Jessie's room open and found her peacefully asleep while snoring loudly as usual. I shook Jessie awake from her bed with urgency.

"Jessie! Jessie! Wake up!" I practically screamed.

Jessie slowly began to stir. She yawned and said blearly asked, "Huh, Christine? What did you say?"

I explained in a panic, "There's strange explosions outside! We need to take shelter now!"

Jessie eyes widened with worry, "Explosions?!"

"Yes," I screamed when suddenly I was interrupted by another explosion of light from outside that made me jump off the bed in fear. "Those!" I exclaimed pointing out the window.

Jessie stared at me for a second and suddenly burst into what I have now dubbed her ha-ha-ha-you-don't-know-something-about-the-surface laugh.

"What's so funny?" I yelled, "We need to get out of here now!"

For some reason, my emphasis on how much danger we were in only seemed to make Jessie laugh even harder. After she had composed herself slightly she said, "That's just thunder silly! You're perfectly safe!"

"What's thunder?" I asked as I began to calm myself realizing that Jessie did not seem scared at all.

"Thunder is what sometimes happens when it rains after electricity comes down and makes a loud noise."

"Wait, electricity!" I said slightly worried.

Jessie yawned and said, "Yeah, it's called lightning. Our buildings completely immune to that and it usually only hits things that are really high up or metal."

"So were not in any danger." I asked.

"Not unless you go outside and while screaming _please splat me!_ while at the same time clinging to a metal poll I think you'll be fine."

"Well, that's a relief." I sighed. I was so glad that the building wasn't going to blow up.

"No problem," said Jessie, "Y'know, you can sleep in here if you want. It helped me when I was scared as a young squid."

I felt a bit foolish being this scared of something that Jessie paid no mind to but the thought of spending the night on the couch alone with the loud noises outside seemed unbearable.

"If it's okay with you..." I said nervously as I flopped into bed.

"Just don't hog the bed or I **will** push you off." said Jessie jokingly. "Besides," she said with a wink, "My team I scheduled for a match tomorrow and I haven't even introduced you to our fourth member."

"Really, who is it?" I asked.

"You'll have to wait and see," Jessie said mischievously, "All I can say is she's a special squid."

As soon as Jessie finished her sentence she rolled over and fell asleep with her familiar loud snore. The rest of the night was nice. Jessie's loud snoring drowned out most of the thunder and it was comfortable knowing there was another person right next to me.

I fell asleep to the light pattering of rain.

 **Did you all guess what Jessie's was referring to as the "special squid"? Yep, it's the winner of the original character contest! *rapa horn plays again* The "special squid" will be introduced next chapter. I had a lot of fun with the OC contest and I think I will do it again someday. Stay fresh!  
**


	12. Chapter 12

**I haven't been able to update in a while because of school but I'm trying to be consistent. Either way this chapter will contain the fanmade OC Kaya by Plutodragon, I hope my interpretation was accurate!**

 **Jessie's P.O.V:**

This was one of the few mornings I woke up to my stupid alarm. I nearly broke it smashing the snooze button in anger. It's against an inklings very nature to get up this early! How undignified! I rolled over in bed and realized Christine wasn't there. She must have already gotten up. How that octoling gets up this early in the morning without an alarm I'll never know.

Either way today was a big day! Turf season was starting and our team is going to kick some shell! Well, hopefully, we got our butts destroyed last year but hopefully Christine will help with that.

Speaking of, I have to introduce her to the fourth member of our team. I think she'll be much nicer than Sasha. That's just the way she is.

"Christine?" I called from my room.

"What is it?" I heard her answer from the kitchen. She was most likely cooking breakfast.

I got up and starting to rummage through my pile of weapons in the room, "We got a match today. You up for it?"

"S-Sure," replied Christine. I couldn't help noticing that she seemed a tad bit nervous. I mean why wouldn't she be. She's never played before. Luckily I had the answer for that…

"Hey Christine, come over here," I said as I dug up my old splattershot jr.

"Yes," said Christine as she came into the room.

"Here take this. Your going to need a weapon." I said as I tossed the splattershot jr toward her.

Christine looked at the splattershot as if it were a brick of pure gold. "A-Are you sure you want to give this to me. Shouldn't I get my own weapon?" she said as she continued eying the weapon in her hands.

"Nah," I replied, "To be honest, that weapon is absolute garbage, the only reason I wouldn't give you a nicer one is that the powers that be don't want noobs handling overpowered weapons."

"Well thank you." said Christine with a smile.

"Your the first person I've seen willingly accept a splattershot jr!" I laughed. "Well, anyhow, we ought to head out after breakfast."

"Sure," said Christine as she continued to pore over every inch of her new weapon, "I hope we'll do well."

"We will. After all, I have a secret weapon." I said as I grinned evilly.

"What's that?" said Christine wide eyed.

"Coffee," I smirked, "C'mon, let's eat before I decide to fall back asleep."

* * *

 **A few cups of coffee and a walk to the turf war lobby later...**

We arrived outside the turf war lobby to a rather subdued Sasha. She kinda avoided conversation with Christine and didn't say much but hey that's an improvement over last time. It was getting late and I felt we were cutting it a bit close. If our fourth member didn't show up we would have to forfeit the match.

Suddenly, I heard commotion as a crowd of inklings ran past our group as if they were being chased by a kraken...and I could see why.

"WAHHOOO!" screamed a black tentacled inkling atop of what looked like a very very old motorbike. It was Kaya. That stupid…!

My thoughts were immediately put on hold as Kaya nearly trampled over us with that stupid motorbike of hers before coming to a quick stop.

"What the shell Kaya! You nearly killed us!" I practically screamed at her.

"But I didn't," she said as she dismounted from the old motorbike.

"What is that thing?!" piped up Sasha as she said her first words all day.

"It's an old human motorbike I found in the dump. I fixed it up." said Kaya enthusiastically.

Typical, Kaya. She was the team's weapon's expert and mechanic. Have something broken? Call Kaya. Need an in depth analysis on your weapon. Call Kaya. Need someone to bring shopping to endlessly talk with Sheldon about weapons even though you really really need to be somewhere. Call Kaya.

Kaya removed her always oil stained goggles and asked, "Who's the new team member?"

I gestured to Christine and said, "Kaya meet Christine. Christine meet Kaya. She's new to Inkapolis and she's staying with me."

"Nice to meetcha!" said Kaya enthusiastically without a hint of loathing, racism, or prejudice. I knew she would like Christine! She would never judge anyone! (Sasha I hope you are paying attention!)

"Well with that out of the way," I sighed, "Let's kick some tail!"

We all excitedly entered the turf war lobby to see who we were facing.

Unfortunately, after we saw the group waiting for us all bets of having a fun day of turfing were off. Christine gasped. I did to. Sasha and Kaya just looked at us confused but they wouldn't know. Of course they wouldn't. The figure in front of simply stared at Christine with hostility.

It was the tall green inkling that messed with Christine on her first day.

* * *

 **BONUS!**

 **Callie and Marie P.O.V:**

"What the shell was that?!" screamed Callie from the safety of the sewer grate with Callie beside her. They had just barely gotten out of the way of that crazy inkling on her motorbike.

"I don't know but Inkopolis sure needs to have a stricter speed limit." grumpled Marie. Her kamino was getting dirty from the sewer.

"Well, we're safe and that's what matters." smiled Callie with her usual positive energy.

"Were on a mission Callie, remember?" said Marie seriously, "We have to make sure that octoling isn't up to anything."

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" said Callie, "This feels less like a mission and more like stalking."

"Of course this is a good idea," said Marie, "Do you want the octarians to capture you again!"

"No..." responded Callie sadly.

"Neither do I and that's exactly why we have to do this." said Marie, "Were not letting our guard down."

Callie swore she saw a tear on Marie's cheek in the darkness before they jumped back into the city streets...

 **ANNNNNDDDDDD that's all for today. This was a long chapter! Anyways, a shout out to Plutodragon's OC Kaya! Let me know what you all thought of her! Read, review, and stay fresh!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Hey, I'm back ya'll with another chapter. I just wanted to put a few disclaimers about how this game goes into splatoon canon and answer the big question I think some readers may have, "Why is everyone so racist toward Christine considering we have Marina, Agent 8, etc?"**

 **Answer: So while we do have octolings in Inkopolis especially after the dlc. It is important to note a few things. First, according to the Inkipedia, few are aware of Marina or Agent 8's race. Second, even though there are a bunch of octolings in inkopolis there are technically all the same person (agent 8) so if we're going to assume in my fanfic that there is only one agent 8 and therefore one octoling besides Marina. Also, it is important to note Agent 8 and Marina look very different from the octolings in single player so it's kinda weird we don't have any "true" octarians yet so therefore Christine resembles an octoling in hero mode.**

 **Christine P.O.V:**

Who? What? Where? Why? How?

My heart beat rapidly. The tall green inkling girl from my first day was here and she was our opponent. I wanted to run. What if she tries to take my money again? What if she hurts me? What if she finds a way to send me back to Octo Canyon?

"So now you think your one of us and you can simply walk in and play turf?" said the inkling with some obvious hostility in her voice as she stared at me with her icy gaze.

Before I could respond Jessie retorted fiercely, "Hey listen, if you have a problem with someone on the team you take up with me!" She then stamped her foot on the ground to emphasize her point.

"Oh, you must be the captain." said the inkling with her arms crossed. She towered over Jessie and looked down at her. This inkling was intimidating through and through.

"Yes," said Jessie, "Yes I am." Jessie was breathing heavily through her nose. I could tell she was trying to restrain herself. She had to anyway. She was representing the team and all. Unfortunately for Jessie a certain inkling was not.

"Hey you stupid punk!" screamed Kaya. Kaya's sudden rage surprised me. She looked like she was planning to take down a kraken or more specifically, the tall inkling in front of her.

"And you are?" sighed the tall inkling in exasperation as she adjusted her glasses.

"The person who's gonna knock your lights out if you dare talk to Christine like that again!" yelled Kaya.

"I'll talk how I want to talk to an octoling!" snapped the tall girl. "Why would you even bother defending an enemy of our race?" she questioned. She then walked directly over Kaya so she was towering over her. "Then again, you don't like much of an inkling to me with those black tentacles," she added.

I saw Kaya turn beet red after that statement. It seemed that tall inkling touched a nerve.

"I'LL SPLAT YOU INTO TOMORROW YOU JERK!" screamed Kaya as she lunged for the tall inkling. Luckily, Jessie, Sasha, and I managed to hold Kaya back.

"LET ME GO!" screamed Kaya as she swung her fists uselessly in the air. The tall inkling just stared at Kaya with a neutral expression as if angry people charging at her was a completely normal occurrence.

"Assaulting an opposing team member is not a good way to begin the season." remarked the tall inkling darkly as she gave Kaya a serious look.

Suddenly I heard a presence behind us. I looked down to see a small small white and black cat looking up at us that appered seemingly out of nowhere.

"Meow, what is going on here?" purred the cat. Everyone kind of stopped what they were doing as if we were all young squids who got caught doing something wrong by our parents. I was confused as to why everyone seemed to be so apprehensive and restrained at the presence of this cat.

The tall inkling was the first to respond. "This team is violating turf war rules by having an octoling on their team not to mention one of them tried to assault me," responded the tall inkling plainly.

"And why would having an octoling on our team be against the rules?" questioned Jessie.

"Your so stupid!" yelled the tall inkling angrily as if it were obvious. "Only inklings are allowed to play turf."

My heart skipped a beat at that. Maybe this inkling was right. What if I wasn't allowed to play turf? Then I wouldn't be able to help Jessie pay rent. She would probably still insist I stay but there would be no point to that. I wouldn't be able to do anything and I would have to go back to Octo Canyon.

"Hrrrrrrmm," purred the cat in thought.

I had no idea how this cat had any authority but everyone on the team gathered around the cat intently as if the cats decision meant life or death.

The cat cleared his throat and began to speak, "Technically, there is no specific rule as who can play turf and your biology is similar enough so I see no reason why you cannot."

I breathed I quiet sigh of relief. It looks like I would be able to turf after all. Kaya and Jessie went berserk with Jessie even going as far to pick up the cat in a massive bear hug.

"Meow, put me down. You are ruining my coat." said the cat slightly annoyed.

"Sorry, Judd." responded Jessie as she put the cat down. So the cat's name was Judd.

The tall green inkling looked dumbfounded at Judd's ruling and shot me an angry glare.

"My team will win either way as soon as they get here." growled the tall inkling as she continued to keep her iron stare on me.

"Meow, there is no need for that," purred Judd as he groomed his now ruffled coat, "All matches are postponed a week for some meowtainance."

Jessie seemed slightly upset at Judd's statement, "Ugh, I was hyping myself up the entire day for this! It's not fair!"

"Sorry, rules are rules." shrugged Judd. "Have a good day." he added and walked off.

I went over to comfort Jessie. "Well at least we'll have more time to prepare." I said.

Jessie seemed to lighten up a little. "Yeah, we're going to have even more time to get ready to kick that stupid squid's butt." she said as she pointed a finger at the tall inkling

.

"I couldn't care less what you are planning to do." responded the tall inkling angrily, "The only thing I care about is making sure none of your kind steal our zapfish again." She winced as she said "your kind" as if the words were sour to her mouth.

"That was not my fault." I started nervously. I was still scared of this inkling. "We were hypnotized."

The tall inkling simply laughed, "You really expect me to believe that?"

"That's the truth." I stated simply and a bit more confidently. I was hypnotized against my will. Whether the inkling believed it or not there was nothing more for me to say.

"Ugh," said the tall inkling in disgust, "Do us all a favor and go underground where you belong octoling." The tall inkling opened the door to leave but before she went out she added, "I'm warning you octoling, for your own sake, get out of inkopolis before someone forces you out."

And with that the inkling left the lobby.

"What a jerk!" Kaya remarked stamping her foot almost immediately when the inkling was out of sight.

"What a egotistical jerk," remarked Jessie. "She acted like she was above us."

Jessie turned around to face me, "Are you okay Christine?" she asked. "I'm sorry that inkling acted that way."

"I don't mind," I shrugged. "You can't please everyone." I was lying. I hated this. I wish I didn't have to deal with this. Well, it's a hundred times better than Octo Canyon. I will never forget that.

Kaya piped up, "That jerk has no right to judge me like that." she said as she gestured toward her charcoal black tentacles. "You think I asked for these?"

I turned to look at Kaya. I never really bothered to ask why her tentacles were black but now I was curious.

"Excuse me, Kaya, why are your tentacles black?"

"Don't know, I was born with em'" stated Kaya plainly, "I'm used to having a few people be jerks over it but sometimes I lose my temper."

Kaya seemed indifferent. People teasing her over her differences were normal to her. I realized I had lot more in common with this black tentacled inkling than I thought. We were both different in some way in certain people disliked our differences but we moved on anyway. I admired this inkling.

Kaya snapped her goggles over her forehead, "Well I'm going to finetune my weapons for the match next week. It was nice to meet you!" Kaya than exited the lobby and I could hear the faint sound of her revving her motorbike from outside.

"I'm going to go home to." said Sasha "See you all later." Sasha than left quickly without saying anything else. I realized how little Sasha spoke today. Perhaps she was still nervous around me.

"Well, looks like we have something to prepare for." said Jessie.

"Yeah…" I sighed.

"Is something wrong?" inquired Jessie.

I sighed again, "I'm sorry Jessie, I'm really getting you in trouble."

"What do you mean?" asked Jessie in surprise.

"It's just that I keep giving you trouble by being on your team." I said sadly. "I nearly got you disqualified from having a full team."

"But we weren't," said Jessie. "Look Christine, you really shouldn't be so hard on yourself."

"I guess…" I responded.

"Christine, I'm going to be honest to you." she bagan. "You have been such a good friend to me and I wouldn't have anyone else on the team."

Friends. That word. It felt so good to be called that. It reminded me that I was more than "an octoling" I was a person who had meaning in someone's life. Whether, it was Jessie's, Cuttlefish's, Kaya's, or maybe even Flow's.

"Thanks Jessie." I said slightly more positively.

"Y'know what I think would cheer you up?" said Jessie. "Shopping."

"Shopping?" I asked.

"Yeah," said Jessie "Sure cheers me up."

I felt the cap on my head. I hadn't seen Flow in awhile. It would be nice to see her and thank her for all she did for me.

"Sure," I responded.

"Cool," exclaimed Jessie happily. "Let's go!"

I smiled. It was good to have friends.

 **Well this was a LONG chapter for my standards. Either way what did you think? I tried to paint the mean tall inkling as more than the "bully with a temper" stereotype. Review and stay fresh!**


	14. Chapter 14

**Well, I'm trying to be more frequent with new chapters so hear I go. It looks like Christine and Jessie have a bit more to wait until they fight the (unnamed) tall inkling girl who really seems to have something for Christine. Well right now Christine and Sasha decide to do a little shopping…**

 **Christine P.O.V:**

Christine and I opened the door to the shop and I immediately smelled the overpowering smell of new hats and fabric. I immediately was greeted to a familiar voice, "Welcome, little octopus."

It was Flow.

I strongly resisted every urge to embrace Flow in a hug but that would be weird not to mention creepy. It still meant so much for me how she gave me that confidence on my first day.

"I see you found some friends little octopus." said Flow with a wink.

"Yes, I did," I responded. "Thank you for everything."

Jessie gave us both a confused look, "You two know each other?" she asked.

"We've...met," I responded.

"THEY DID!" blurted that tiny crustacean that was always on Flow's head.

"Now little octopus, I sense you are here to buy some gear this time." said Flow as she adjusted a few hats on the nearest shelf. I suspected she got a new order or something. The shop was cluttered with piles of new looking hats of all shapes and sizes. She probably didn't have a lot of time to organize considering how early we were because of the now cancelled turf war. Inklings never get up early. It was 10:00 AM. While this seems pretty late, it was practically the equivalent of me getting up at midnight in Octo Canyon.

"Please, let your aura choose which hat it desires," said Flow. "Take your time."

Jessie kinda went berserk over how many new hats there were. Apparently, they had the freshest new styles. Inklings always seemed so concerned with the newest fashion. Honestly, this mesh cap suited me just find but I was here to buy something. It as the least I could do to give Flow some business after she gave me the really nice but undoubtedly expensive mesh cap that rested on my head.

The choices were overwhelming. So many hats. Big ones. Small ones. Silly ones. Cool ones. Casual ones. There were so many choices. It took me a little bit to decide but I eventually settled upon a cozy looking wool beanie that reside on the highest shelf which I had to jump to reach. Considering how small Flow is compared to me, I had no idea why she had such a high shelf. Maybe that crustacean thing was able to reach it somehow.

Christine payed despite my protests for her not to do so. She insisted she had more than enough money but she really didn't need to.

"Please come again, little octopus." said Flow as we left out the door and into the streets of Inkopolis.

"So what were we doing now?" I asked.

"Well-"

Jessie was immediately stopped what she was saying as a loud voice boomed through the speakers of the plaza and all the electronic billboards switched to a different program.

"YO, HOLD ON TO YOUR TENTACLES!" said a short but very loud inkling that appeared on the billboard. However, I was not paying much attention to her as I was gawking at the source of the next voice.

"IT'S INKOPOLIS NEWS TIME!" squealed an octoling on the billboard. An octoling!? Was this one of the octolings that Cuttlefish told me about? The one who the inklings didn't know was an octarian? The octoling obviously was popular as the few inklings who were up at this hour nearby immediately began talking excitedly and pointing to the screen. I looked over at Christine who was transfixed at a nearby billboard. She did not seem to be surprised there was an octoling being projected all across Inkopolis.

"Jessie!" I said urgently.

"Yeah, Christine?" she responded as her eyes were still glued to the billboard.

"Who are they!?" I asked while trying not to yell in her ear in confusion.

"They're Pearl and Marina!" squealed Jessie like a crazed fangirl. "Aren't they great?"

"Why is that one an octoling?" I asked as I pointed to her on the screen.

"She's not an octoling." said Jessie. "Why would you think that?"

My jaw nearly dropped to the ground. What would make me think that?! The eyes?! The tentacles?! The tentacles that don't remotely look like any inkling on Earth! Are inklings really this gullible?

"Jessie, that's an octoling." I said.

"What makes you say that?" said Jessie in confusion.

"Jessie, it's obvious," I stated, "Look at her tentacles compared to mine."

Jessie looked at the octoling called Marina's tentacles and than at mine. Sure enough they were pretty similar.

"OMG, your right!" gasped Jessie. I rolled my eyes. How could anyone not know?

"Why would she never tell the public though?" asked Jessie.

"Well, considering the reception I got, I don't blame her," I sighed.

Jessie and I watched the rest of the news which basically consisted of turf war and more turf war. I found it kind of ironic. Inklings turf for fun and octarians turf for actual war.

Throughout, the whole broadcast I examined the octoling. She looked older than me, her tentacles were much longer than mine. I was still growing them but I was almost done. Long tentacles for an octarian meant old age. However, I was still baffled that the inklings thought this octoling was one of them. I mean the tentacles for crying out loud!

Once the broadcast was over, I went over to Jessie.

"Jessie, do you think I could find out where this octoling lives?" I asked.

"Yes and no." said Jessie as she started to rustle through the bag of hats she bought and closely examined each one. "Well, for starters they're celebrities so everyone knows where they live but your chances of getting in and meeting them are slim."

"Why?" I asked confused.

"Christine, they're insanely popular," said Jessie, "If they let just any squid in they would be mobbed."

"They're really that popular?" I asked in amazement.

"Oh yeah," said Jessie, "Sasha, Kaya, and I even tried finding a way in their place to say 'hi' once."

"Ummm, that does not sound like it was a good idea." I commented.

"It was actually pretty fun even though we were lucky we didn't get arrested." said Jessie. "Sasha, Kaya and I tried sneaking in while Jessie brought her laptop and tried to hack their security system."

"So what went wrong?" I asked.

"Kaya actually got bested in tech for once!" Jessie exclaimed as she began to chuckle at the memory. "Apparently Marina is some sort of tech wizz!" she said, "You should've seen Kaya when her laptop almost blew up in her face."

"Octarians are pretty good with technology," I remarked.

"Well they must be because we barely even got over their fence before security was on us!" laughed Jessie, "It was scary but looking back it was pretty fun although I certainly have no intention of doing it again."

"Well that's a shame," I said as I hung my head. "I was hoping to meet them."

"But you can!" said Jessie. "They have a little studio where you can sometimes wave to them through the glass!"

"Really?" I said. I was so excited! Perhaps, I would be able to meet another octoling. I missed being able to talk to a real octoling for once and not one that was hypnotized under Octavio's control.

"Yeah, let's head over there right now!" stated Jessie, "We don't have anything better to do!"

"Yeah, let's!" I responded.

We then ran off to see the two idols. The sun shined brighter than ever on the surface world that was now my home.

 **So I decided that including Marina in this story is a must considering she is the only octoling in inkapolis besides Agent 8. I hope you all are enjoying the story. Please share the love and write a review! Stay fresh!**


	15. Chapter 15

**Christine P.O.V:**

Jessie and I hurried over to the studio in Inkopolis. It was getting to be about noon so many of the inklings were on the streets. I got a decent amount of stares from some but I notice that there was a growing difference with how inklings reacted to me passing them. I was seeing less and less surprised expressions. Now the emotions were still very much the same whether it was hostility, confusion, or curiosity. I just felt like people were starting to learn that I was here in the city. Word of mouth I guess.

It was actually interesting to see the differences in how inklings reacted. I notice one particularly frightened female inkling run away while another just stared me down while I passed her. Some inklings were actually quite curious. A small group ended up following us for a while for a few minutes until they had second thoughts and doubled back. A select few inklings completely ignored us as if there was nothing abnormal going on. They would simply pass us as if we were any other person on the street.

Either way, we ended up finding the studio that Jessie was describing and she excitedly beckoned me to an open window. I peeked looked through to see the two idols we saw on the billboards earlier. Pearl and Marina I think they were called? Pearl, the inkling I'm pretty sure, was chatting away at a table with Marina, the octoling. It took a few seconds but they immediately stopped what they were doing when they saw us. Pearl seemed very surprised and looked over at Jessie than at me. However, Marina looked downright shocked, she covered her mouth with her hands in surprise and immediately ran out of the room. Pearl seemed confused at Marina's reaction and gave us a perplexed look and ran off after her.

"What was that all about?" asked Jessie.

"Do they usually act this way?" I said as I turned to face Jessie.

"No, they usually just smile and wave," said Jessie as she continued to squint at the spot where the two idols once were.

"Do you think we scared them?" I asked. What if Marina didn't want to be around other octolings? Maybe she was worried that she would be recognized if I was in her proximity. Maybe seeing another octarian was too much to process.

As I was thinking this I heard a voice clear their throat behind me and Jessie.

"Ahem," said a voice with a slight octarian accent.

Both Jessie and myself immediately fell on the ground as we saw one of the idols right in front of us, Marina. I immediately felt myself lifted off the ground only to be tackled again in a hug by a very very hyper octoling.

"Oh my God, it has been so long since I've seen another octarian!" squealed Marina with joy.

Jessie was just looking at us totally stunned as one of the biggest idols in Inkopolis was right in front of her.

Eventually Marina released me, "I'm sorry," she said, "It's just been so long, please, come in to the studio." This was too good to be true. To finally see another octoling, not to mention a very successful one, was amazing.

"I would…" I was stuttering with excitement. "...love to." I finished.

Jessie however finally came to her senses and starting fangirling so much that I was starting to wonder if Marina was really the hyper one here.

"OMG! YOUR MARINA! WOW! WOW! WOW! YES WE WOULD LOVE TO!" screamed Jessie. She began to bombard the idol with questions ranging from when their next concert was to what she was eating for lunch. The octoling simply laughed as she showed us through a rather secluded backdoor into the studio.

It was so large and luxurious! Lights and cameras lined every corner with plenty of cozy looking seats and chairs for relaxation. There wasn't much staff here as I didn't see many other inklings. I reasoned it was probably because the news broadcast for the day was finished. However, I noticed there was still at least one inkling still here…

"Yo Marina!" screamed Pearl, "Are these our guests?"

I noticed Jessie seemed to be resisting every urge not to explode with excitement. She looked like she was going to faint.

"Yes Pearlie," responded Marina as she turned to me, "Now let's find a place we can sit down and chat."

We then turned to an empty room which seemed like it's purpose was still a work in progress. There was a chair and a table along with a few supplies such as cameras or lights. We both sat down.

"So," said Marina, "I never asked your names."

"I'm Christine and this is Jessie," I replied.

"Now, please tell me everything about how you got here!" said Marina excitedly.

I then told her everything. Finding Cuttlefish's shack, Flow's store, meeting Jessie, joining a turf war team, and my encounter with the tall unnamed inkling.

"Well, I'm so glad to hear everything is going well for you." said Marina. "How is Octo Canyon?"

"Not good," I said sadly, "Apparently Octavio snuck away again after that Agent 4 captured him and now is plotting revenge." I continued as Marina as well as Pearl looked at me seriously, "The few octarians who managed to hide from the other octarians are now under his control. I was lucky. I broke the shades by accident."

"Hmmm," said Marina, "And I thought Octavio was going to stay locked up this time."

"Same here," I sighed.

"Well it is wonderful to meet another octoling again," piped up Marina changing topic. The rest of the afternoon was taken up with talking about things only two octolings could converse about. Technology, geology, history, that sort of thing. It felt like I was back before octavio went on his mad rampage to destroy the inklings. Before us octolings were hypnotized by octavio and the other octarians.

That mad campaign. That dreaded thing that destroyed our lives. Not all of us were against it at first actually, a lot of octolings hated the inklings and a few even went willingly. The majority of us thought it was stupid though. We already lost to the inklings in the Great Turf war so why try it again? Especially considering resources and power were so scarce. But Octavio had a plan to get the octolings on his side, he advertised "ma free goggles that help ya aim so fresh that even the inklings don't have em!'" They were said to be some sort of goggles that could help you aim better or see in the dark or something. I forget. We didn't think Octavio was going to war when we got them but we took them anyway. Why wouldn't we? Us octolings were armed to the teeth. We already received so much weapons and upgrades we didn't give it a second thought. That was a mistake.

I never put on the goggles. I was a young octoling back then. I didn't even have my humanoid form yet. The octolings in the army however began acting strangely. The hatred of inklings which was usually a dull roar was cacophonous corus of angry octolings who were out to destroy the little upstarts on the surface. The goggles intensified your hatred, put the usually mild mannered octolings into a frenzy. The octolings who never put on the goggles noticed this shift in attitude but never drew the connection. Of all things it seemed like public opinion had shifted toward a campaign against the inklings. Some of us were actually pretty excited and while I dont like to admit it, I myself was pretty hyped. Finally being able to experience the surface and to see the sun sounded wonderful.

Long story short, Agent 3 trashed us and after Octavio was captured and when his giant turntable broke so did his control over us. We had a lot of time to think while Octavio was imprisoned. Maybe we were wrong about inklings? Maybe, after all this time, we were being manipulated? By the time Octavio came back, the octolings didn't want to go to war anymore.

"You hypnotized us, why should we follow you?" I remember a certain elite screaming.

"Maybe the inklings aren't so bad anymore? We shouldn't go to war anymore!" I remember another stating.

Octavio said the goggles were simply "an incentive". When we didn't accept that answer octavio resorted to drastic measures. Now, us octolings were granted superior intellect opposed to the other octarians. That's what set us apart. The other octarians,however, were too stupid to realize they had been duped by Octavio. They were still blindly loyal. Octavio engineered special shades and ordered the other octarians to make sure every octoling had one on. Betrayed by our own race, we tried to escape but to no avail. Other octolings who became hypnotized only served to hypnotize more octolings. It was like a zombie invasion. An infection growing by the second. The last thing I remember were my closest friends putting the shades on me as I struggled to get away.

Octavio made sure to make sure we all stayed hypnotized if he failed again and to this day I do not know where the central source of his hypnotism is. All I know is that us octolings stayed hypnotized afterward. Octavio was captured again, this time by Agent 4 and then managed to escape again! Seriously, Inklings need better security. He's still plotting revenge somewhere in Octo Canyon but the octarians are in no shape to do anything right now. Around the time Octavio escaped a second time, I remember hearing strange music and banging my head against a rock, breaking the shades off. I then proceeded to wander Octo Canyon for days, avoiding all the other octarians, until I came across Cuttlefish.

Marina interrupted my thoughts, "Umm, Christine are you okay."

"Oh, I'm fine." I responded a little startled at being pulled out of my thoughts so jaringly, "Although I did want to ask a question if your okay with it."

"Sure!" said Marina ecstatically.

"Do the other inklings really not know your an octoling," I asked.

Marina began to look uncomfortable.

"Well…" she began.

 **Well that's all for now. I'm** **particularly** **proud of this chapter. I thought it would be nice to show why the octarians acted how they did in Splatoon 1 and 2 and how they originally felt about inklings. I just though providing some backstory on Christine would be nice. Remember review!**


	16. Chapter 16

**Here's ANOTHER chapter. Jeez I've been banging these out constantly. Looks like Marina has been asked a complicated question. Enjoy!**

"Well…" began Marina, "for the most part no inklings know of my race."

"For the most part?" I asked as both Pearl and Jessie listened intently.

"There are a few close friends who know," she said as she twirlled her tentacle nervously. "I've thought about telling the public but I've just worked so hard to get here…"

"Marina!" interjected Pearl, "Your fans love you! They won't care!"

"Your probably right," replied Marina with a sad smile, "I just don't want to take that risk yet. Maybe someday. Thank you Pearlie."

"I do what I can!" said Pearl as she pumped a fist in the air.

"Well I can sympathize." I responded.

We all just sat in a bit of awkward silence after that. After a minute or so Marina spoke again.

"Please can I get your number Christine before leave," said Marina, "It has been amazing to talk to another octoling."

"Sure," I said as I pulled out my squid phone (Jessie got me one).

"Well we won't keep you..." said Marina.

"Yo, come back again some time!" yelled Pearl.

"Wait!" said Jessie seriously, "I need to ask you something very important."

We all looked at Jessie. Waiting for what she was about to say.

"Umm," said Jessie nervously, "Can I have your autographs?"

Pearl and Marina burst into laughter.

"Sure," said Marina.

We were all lead back out the door and as soon as it closed Jessie began to bombard me with a series of what could only be described as fangirling and more fangirling.

"OMG, OMG, OMG THAT WAS SO AMAZING! I GOT TO SEE PEARL AND MARINA! DID YOU SEE?! DID YOU SEE?!"

"Yes Jessie," I responded in monotone, "I was right there."

"Well that was awesome!" said Jessie.

"I'm sure it was…" I said as I rolled my eyes.

We then walked down the street together. It was a nice day. Inkopolis was bustling with it's usual activity. Jellyfish touched the ground (I never knew why), Inklings began turfing, and shopkeepers opened their shops. Jessie and I decided to take a shortcut through a less populated backstreets to get back to her apartment. Besides, it would be a nice change of pace to avoid the usual business of the square.

However, Jessie and I both froze in our tracks as we saw a familiar figure directly in our path. The tall female inkling was walking toward us no more than a few meters away. Jessie gasped and we both turned into are cephalopod forms and hid behind some conveniently placed trash cans.

"Crap, crap, crap, crap," muttered Jessie still in her squid form, "Do you think she saw us."

I peered over the trashcan and thankfully she hadn't. Actually, it was very odd, because she wasn't looking in our direction at all. In fact, it looked she was the one trying not to be seen as she adjusted her glasses under her green tentacles and looked left and right over and over as if she were worried she were going to get caught for something. She then walked into a nearby alley.

"What is she doing?" whispered Jessie.

"I don't know," I said nervously, "Something doesn't seem right. We should follow her." I then turned into my humanoid form and Jessie soon fallowed suit realizing the coast was clear.

"Are you joking?" Jessie nearly screamed as she tugged her headband. "We'll get pounded!"

"Not if we don't get caught," I said as I leaped over the trash can.

Jessie looked like she was about to protest but sighed and followed me anyway. We peered into the alley and I gasped in shock. The alley had no end but the tall green inkling wasn't there but something else was...

A manhole cover.

Something bad was going to happen. My octoling soldier instinct was kicking in. That instinct before your about to head into mortal danger. My heart was beating through my chest.

"Jessie," I said, my voice detached.

"Yeah," Jessie said nervously as she sensed that I found something was amiss.

"Jessie, I think she went down that manhole cover," I said as my voice trembled, "I'm following her and you will not follow me." I said that last part as if it were a command

"Huh, why?" asked Jessie.

"Jessie…" I began but my body began to shake as I was overcome with emotion. "Jessie, if this manhole leads where I think it leads than I can't have you follow me."

"Christine…" began Jessie but I interrupted her.

"Jessie, if…" I began to sob, "If...I don't come back...thank you."

"Christine please," said Jessie, "I don't understand."

"Just don't follow me." I sniffed.

"Jessie, I'm not leaving until…"

Jessie never finished her sentence. I took out my Junior out of my bag and with a loud crack I knocked her in the head with the butt of it. She was out before she hit the ground. I was sure to not hit too hard. She would probably wake up with a minor headache.

Whatever was about to happen I can't let Jessie down there. I was going into Octo Canyon. The place I never wanted to see again. I was going into my own version of hell and whatever reason the tall inkling went down there it wasn't good. I needed to figure out why. Why would an inkling go to Octo Canyon?

I took one last look at Jessie before I hoisted my Junior over my shoulder. She probably would never forgive me for this. Maybe, I could convince her that I was right to do what I did when this was over…assuming I survived and I didn't get splatted by that inkling or something else for that matter.

I turned into octopus form and jumped down the manhole cover. Tears no longer of sadness but of determination filled my eyes.

 **Jeez this chapter is dark! Any theories of what the yet-to-be-named-inkling is up to? Hope your enjoy the story and as always keep reviewing! Let me hear your voice! Stay fresh my fellow squids (or octopi).**


	17. Chapter 17

**Hey guys! I just wanted to say thank you for all your reviews. I've been getting some OC's requests and they have not gone unnoticed! It will take time for me to be able to put in an OC as I'm getting into some pretty big plot stuff in these chapters but don't give up hope! Just keep reading and I may be able to put your person in!**

 **Christine P.O.V:**

After going down some twists and turns through Inkopolis sewer I landed harshly onto stone ground out of a grate. I looked up at a confusing sight as I took in my surroundings. It was familiar. All familiar.

I was back at Cuttlefish's shack! What was going on? Why did the tall inkling want to go here?

I began to tip toe over to the shack but immediately jumped behind a rock in octopus form as I saw someone suddenly walked out of it. I peaked over and saw the tall female inkling had walked out but she was dressed differently.

Suddenly, the mysterious inkling was instantly recognizable. She held a hero shot in one hand and wore a strange uniform with a set of headphones. She carried herself confidently as if going to Octo Canyon was commonplace. To my horror I realized that this was no ordinary inkling.

The inkling was Agent 4!

Icy sweat trickled down my forehead. I heard rumors of Agent 4. The legendary warrior who single handedly defeated Octavio and the entire octarian army. If this inkling was as good as the rumors said he was than I didn't stand a chance in an altercation. I couldn't leave now, not with this inkling so close to the exit I needed to jump through. Excuses wouldn't help either, considering how she previously interacted with me, she would just love to splat me.

Suddenly, two female inklings came out to greet Agent 4. I recognized them as well! They were the two inklings that were following Jessie and I a few nights ago. It was all starting to come together…

"Hello Agent 4!" squealed the pink inkling happily.

"Hello Callie!" said Agent 4 cheerfully. I was taken aback by how... **nice** Agent 4 sounded. Everytime a saw or spoke to her she had a sharp edge to her voice matched only by her scowl. Right now she sounded like a different person with a tone as sweet as honey. It was tragic almost. Maybe if I was not an octoling we could have been good friends...

"How goes the investigation of that octoling?" said the inkling with the umbrella and dress in a rather serious tone compared to the pink inkling's.

"She's definitely up to something," replied Agent 4, "She's acted quiet suspiciously."

Rage boiled up inside of me threatening to spill out. This inkling was flat out lying about me. Suspicious?! I haven't done anything remotely suspicious. All I've done is get bullied and harrassed by this inkling! How dare she say that! However, snooping around here wasn't going to help my case in the suspiciousness department. I needed to find a way out of here but the exit was still in sight of these inklings.

"Well, we just need you to do some reckon, Agent 4," said the inkling with the dress, "Callie and I are going to go up."

I panicked. That meant they were going through the exit right where I was! If I was found I was toast! More than that I could be...splatted. The thought was horrific I didn't want to die. Not now. I have friends. I have a place to call home. I even met another octoling. Not here. Not yet.

I devised a plan. Considering their was no use in talking may way out of this one. I needed to run for it. I had a weapon but it was a junior and from what Jessie told me it isn't the best weapon. I would have to run as fast as I could to the grate. Now.

The two other inklings were walking down to the exit as Agent 4 waved them off. I needed to act now. I shifted into humanoid form and bolted.

"What the-?!" said the two inklings in unison.

I had maybe fifteen yards to the exit. The two inklings were barely even composing themselves and I was already halfway there. Everything was moving in slow motion. I had less than six yards to go now. I was going to make it.

I was too slow.

In a blink of an eye, I heard a few shots from a gun and the ground before me was covered in bright green ink. I was moving so fast I couldn't stop and I tripped in panic and fell face first into a sticky puddle of ink.

I looked behind me and to my shock Agent 4 had already ran over to my location. She was incredibly fast. Her reaction time to my sudden escape attempt was incredibly quick and her ability to get to me so fast was terrifying. I was witnessing Agent 4's legendary combat skills firsthand.

Agent 4's run broke into a walk as she realized I was still thoroughly restrained by her ink puddle. I struggled to move. The ink was disgusting not to mention the fact that being trapped in an enemy's ink was painful.

The inkling seemed to enjoy watching me struggle to escape the ink. The other two inklings began to run back to the shack.

"I don't why your here," said the inkling with a smile as she walked over to me, "but now there's nothing between me and ending your worthless existence."

Agent 4 then quickly covered the exit with ink in quick succession with her hero shot. There was no escape.

I had gotten up now. Shaking. My body was still reeling from the shock of being exposed to enemy ink. I drew my junior. This inkling wanted a fight. I had no choice. Perhaps, I could catch her off guard and clean the exit with my own ink. However, the chances of this before being splated were slim to none.

However, I could still try one last attempt at diplomacy…

"Listen," I said calmly, "I can explain."

"Don't give me that jellyfish dung!" screamed Agent 4 in sudden rage.

I was beginning to get angry, "Why do you hate me so much!?" I screamed.

"Stupid octoling," said the inkling, "Don't play dumb. I'll never let you take the Great Zapfish again or kill anyone ever again!"

That last part took confused me. Amazingly, the octarians never ended up killing a single inkling after the Great Turf War. Even with our repeated attempts to harm the inklings. What was this inkling talking about? However, the time for thinking was over. If I was to get splatted then I certainly wasn't going down quietly.

"Fine!" I shouted as I pulled out my junior. "You give me no choice!"

Agent 4 looked at my splattershot jr as if it were a popgun.

"This will be easy octoling," said Agent 4 with a wicked smile on your face, "I've splatted many octolings before and you are not even an elite."

"Looks can be deceiving," I responded.

Agent 4 sighed as if she were tired and put her hand in her pocket. I realized what she was doing before her hand even left her pocket. I leaped away as Agent 4 threw a splat bomb in my direction. I narrowly missed the blast radius as I fell to the ground firing my splattershot jr. It had little effect as Agent 4 easily dodged my shots before returning fire.

I tried inking a little safe patch of ink to hide in but it was no use. My splattershot junior was too slow and agent 4 was too fast. I was losing. Blindly I began to run past Cuttlefish's shack and into one of the kettles that was near it. I knew I wasn't going to make it...

I didn't even noticed when the pink inkling suddenly jumped out of the shack with a gigantic roller at me before everything went black.

 **Well this chapter was intense. For a game so focused on fighting and shooting I haven't covered this in my fic before. Yo, if any of you are deviant artists or tumblr's are whatever please consider drawing my characters (or better yet OC ideas). The beautiful thing about stories is that people imagine the same character differently so I would be curious to see how artists would envision them. Plus, I suck at drawing ;) Anyways, I hope you are all enjoying the story. Have a good one and Stay Fresh (and review!)**


	18. Chapter 18

**Jeez I did two chapters in one hour...Whew! Let's just get to the story this time…**

 **Christine's P.O.V:**

I woke up feeling incredibly groggy. My head felt like it got hit. Hard. Well, I wasn't't dead so that was a plus. As my vision started to focus I realized I was sitting upright in Cuttlefish's shack. I tried to move but couldn't. I looked down and saw that I was restrained by ropes tied to the chair. Where was Cuttlefish speaking of which? Did he trick me somehow? No. He wouldn't do that. Something must be up.

I heard voices in the other room.

"Why didn't you finish the job?!" said an angry voice.

"Sorry Agent 4!" said a surprisingly happy voice that could only belong to that inkling that clocked me in the head with the plastic part of her roller.

"Listen Agent 4 why don't you go home." said a serious voice that I could only reason was the dress wearing inkling.

"We should have finished it."

"Agent 4, were agents not monsters," said the dress wearing inkling's voice.

"..."

"Go home Agent 4," said the dress wearing inkling's voice again, "You've done enough."

"Do the right thing and finish it," said Agent 4's voice.

"Agent 4, calm down and go home," said the dress wearing inkling again, "That's an order."

I then heard footsteps followed by a curse word and a door slamming.

Then I heard footsteps coming in my direction.

The dress wearing inkling came in along with the pink inkling.

"Okay, let's get down to business," said the dress wearing inkling with a touch of hostility in her voice. "I'm Marie and this is Callie."

"Listen this is all a-" I began but was cut off.

"Save it," said Marie coldly. "What did Octavio do this time?"

"I'm telling you this isn't Octavio." I said desperately, "I'm not your enemy."

The tall inkling suddenly lost her composure, "Are you planning to kidnap my sister again?! Is that it?!" she screamed.

"No it isn't!" I shouted, "If you would just listen to me!"

Marie seemed ready to explode or tackle me in the chair but suddenly became calm again, "Callie, she's not gonna tell us anything, let's just be humane and send her back to Octavio."

I panicked. It was going to happen. I was being sent back. Everything I worked for was going away. I would go into Octo Canyon and become hypnotized again. I would never see Jessie again.

"Please!" I began to sob, "Don't send me back!"

"I'm sorry octoling but this is the only way." said Marie as she drew a blindfold from her pocket and began to approach me. As the blindfold began to close in on my eyelids, flashbacks of hands of friends putting hypnoshades on me began to flash before my eyes. I panicked and went delirious with fear.

"DON'T HYPNOTIZE ME OCTAVIO! I screamed, "I DON'T WANT TO BE ONE OF THEM!"

I flailed wildly to escape tipping the chair I was in backwards.

"I don't wanna be an octoling anymore..." I sobbed quietly while on the ground.

I passed out. I couldn't take the fear anymore. I just wanted to disappear from all of this.

 **Callie and Marie's P.O.V:**

Callie had her hands over her mouth in shock while Marie was taken aback.

"Callie, let's just carry her and dump her over by the first kettle," said Marie as she regained her composure, "There's no need for a blindfold anymore.

"NO!"

Marie turned to see her cousin blocking the door defiantly.

"What?" said Marie confused.

"Can't you see we caught an innocent person?" said Callie as she began to cry, "Didn't' you see how she reacted?"

"That's ridiculous," said Marie, "She was spying on us."

"No," said Callie, "You've been stalking this octoling all the time hoping to catch her doing something wrong! Let's here what she has to say!"

"Callie, this kind of carelessness let Octavio capture you we can't make the same mist-"

"To shell with me being captured!" sobbed Callie, "Octavio took me from my home and the way I see it were doing the same thing!"

"Callie," began Marie but she was interrupted by a loud boom and a blast of purple ink as the door to the cabin flew open and an inkling entered.

"Hey," said Jessie as she wielded a hydra splatling.

"Am I late?"


	19. Chapter 19

**Hey, I really appreciate everyone's support for this fic. Thank you all! Now, I think its important to show how Jessie got here…**

 **Jessie P.O.V (this takes place a few moments before the last chapter)**

Ow.

My head hurt as I lifted myself from the pavement as I tried to figure out what the shell just happened. One second I was talking to Christine and the next I'm on the ground.

Wait! Christine! I remembered immediately as the vaque image of Christine's splattershot junior wizzing toward my head before I blacked out. She was talking about how she thought she was going somewhere dangerous and told me not to fallow her.

Why did she have to hit me upside the head with a splattershot then? What could be so dangerous below that grate? A sewer or something? It didn't make sense to me.

Well, whatever it was, it had to be pretty bad to warrant hitting your BFF with a splattershot junior. Seriously, my head was kiling me. What kind of person does that? When I find Christine I need to give her a piece of my mind! If she thinks that she can just trot into danger without her bestie than she is W-R-O-N-G!

However, I was worried. How long was I out for? Christine could already be in danger! I unzipped my bag and pulled out my hydra splatling. I would need something to defend myself with. I sometimes wander how I manage to fit this ginormous weapon in my bag everyday. Whatever. I'll think about my packing habits later.

Either way, I took one last look at the grate and began to have second thoughts. What could be so dangerous that was down there? It couldn't be that bad? Right?

Well, now isn't the time for second thoughts. I stowed my fear, turned into squid form, and jumped through.

After a few twists and turns I landed with a massive thud on some rocky ground. I looked up and everything looked very weird. Their were strange rocks everywhere and dead grey sky was far above my head. This place was massive! How could something this big be under Inkapolis. There was also a little cabin just up ahead. Then it hit me.

This has to be Octo Canyon. I immediately readied my Hydra Splatling. Now, I understood why Christine didn't want me to come. This was Octo Canyon. The place she wanted to never return to. I better be careful. I didn't know the area or if anyone was living that cabin.

I cautiously took a better look at my surroundings and nearly stepped in a puddle of green ink. Actually, the whole area was covered in green and purple ink. It was already evaporating so I could move about as long as I was careful but jeeze it looked like there was a massive fight of some sort.

Wait, hold up. The tall inkling had green ink and Christine has purple ink. Oh no!

Did they get into a fight? What happened? What if Christine got splatted?

I looked around to see if there was any clear victor and I saw an overwhelming amount of green ink to purple ink. This wasn't even close. Christine must've been crazily overwhelmed.

My heart shattered as I realized what must have happened…

Christine probably was splatted.

I fell to the ground without even realizing it. I began to sob quietly. Christine was gone. My friend. My friend was dead. I should've done something. I should've clocked **her** upside the head and knocked her out so she wouldn't go. It was my fault. All my fault. I began to sob louder.

But then I looked over at the cabin not too far away and realized that now was not the time for crying. It looked pretty run down but someone could still be living in there and my crying could likely attract unwanted attention. I sniffed and became determined.

Maybe, that tall inkling was in there. She would pay for what she had done! She splatted Christine! I began to trudge toward the cabin with my splattershot drawn. It was time to find this murderer.

Then I heard something.

Crying. Crying coming from the cabin. It was in Christine's voice! She was still alive! I charged toward the cabin.

Never again. Never will Christine have to suffer. Never will Christine have to do these dangerous things because of her race. She's so brave. All she ever wanted was a place to call home and friends. She doesn't deserve this because she's an octoling. She doesn't have to have this burden.

Well, Christine, I will always here for you. You don't have to do these things yourself. I can help you. I'm your friend. You mean so much to me and I hate to hear you when you're unhappy...even now.

I was almost to the door. I blew it right off its hinges with my hydra splatling.

"Hey," I said as I entered the cabin with my weapon drawn.

"Am I late?"

 **Well, I must say I feel this chapter was pretty well written compared to my others. It was pretty emotional. I hope you are enjoying it so far! Let me know what you think in a review. Stay fresh!**

 **Hey, I really appreciate everyone's support for this fic. Thank you all! Now, I think its important to show how Jessie got here…**

 **Jessie P.O.V (this takes place a few moments before the last chapter)**

Ow.

My head hurt as I lifted myself from the pavement as I tried to figure out what the shell just happened. One second I was talking to Christine and the next I'm on the ground.

Wait! Christine! I remembered immediately as the vaque image of Christine's splattershot junior wizzing toward my head before I blacked out. She was talking about how she thought she was going somewhere dangerous and told me not to fallow her.

Why did she have to hit me upside the head with a splattershot then? What could be so dangerous below that grate? A sewer or something? It didn't make sense to me.

Well, whatever it was, it had to be pretty bad to warrant hitting your BFF with a splattershot junior. Seriously, my head was kiling me. What kind of person does that? When I find Christine I need to give her a piece of my mind! If she thinks that she can just trot into danger without her bestie than she is W-R-O-N-G!

However, I was worried. How long was I out for? Christine could already be in danger! I unzipped my bag and pulled out my hydra splatling. I would need something to defend myself with. I sometimes wander how I manage to fit this ginormous weapon in my bag everyday. Whatever. I'll think about my packing habits later.

Either way, I took one last look at the grate and began to have second thoughts. What could be so dangerous that was down there? It couldn't be that bad? Right?

Well, now isn't the time for second thoughts. I stowed my fear, turned into squid form, and jumped through.

After a few twists and turns I landed with a massive thud on some rocky ground. I looked up and everything looked very weird. Their were strange rocks everywhere and dead grey sky was far above my head. This place was massive! How could something this big be under Inkapolis. There was also a little cabin just up ahead. Then it hit me.

This has to be Octo Canyon. I immediately readied my Hydra Splatling. Now, I understood why Christine didn't want me to come. This was Octo Canyon. The place she wanted to never return to. I better be careful. I didn't know the area or if anyone was living that cabin.

I cautiously took a better look at my surroundings and nearly stepped in a puddle of green ink. Actually, the whole area was covered in green and purple ink. It was already evaporating so I could move about as long as I was careful but jeeze it looked like there was a massive fight of some sort.

Wait, hold up. The tall inkling had green ink and Christine has purple ink. Oh no!

Did they get into a fight? What happened? What if Christine got splatted?

I looked around to see if there was any clear victor and I saw an overwhelming amount of green ink to purple ink. This wasn't even close. Christine must've been crazily overwhelmed.

My heart shattered as I realized what must have happened…

Christine probably was splatted.

I fell to the ground without even realizing it. I began to sob quietly. Christine was gone. My friend. My friend was dead. I should've done something. I should've clocked **her** upside the head and knocked her out so she wouldn't go. It was my fault. All my fault. I began to sob louder.

But then I looked over at the cabin not too far away and realized that now was not the time for crying. It looked pretty run down but someone could still be living in there and my crying could likely attract unwanted attention. I sniffed and became determined.

Maybe, that tall inkling was in there. She would pay for what she had done! She splatted Christine! I began to trudge toward the cabin with my splattershot drawn. It was time to find this murderer.

Then I heard something.

Crying. Crying coming from the cabin. It was in Christine's voice! She was still alive! I charged toward the cabin.

Never again. Never will Christine have to suffer. Never will Christine have to do these dangerous things because of her race. She's so brave. All she ever wanted was a place to call home and friends. She doesn't deserve this because she's an octoling. She doesn't have to have this burden.

Well, Christine, I will always here for you. You don't have to do these things yourself. I can help you. I'm your friend. You mean so much to me and I hate to hear you when you're unhappy...even now.

I was almost to the door. I blew it right off its hinges with my hydra splatling.

"Hey," I said as I entered the cabin with my weapon drawn.

"Am I late?"


	20. Chapter 20

**Well, I'm making another chapter. Let's see how things go down. Callie and Marie seem to have found themselves in a bit of a pickle.**

 **Jessie's P.O.V**

After I bursted into the cabin, I noticed two things. One, Christine was on the floor and looked to be unconscious. Two, her captors were...the Squid Sisters?!

I gaped open mouthed. I didn't know what to do. I simply froze with my hydra splatling pointed at them. The Squid Sisters captured Christine?! What is going on?! However, while I stood for about a minute staring like an idiot as I pointed a weapon at the second biggest celebrities in Inkopolis, the Squid Sisters had a lot to say.

"What the…!" said Marie.

"She has a weapon!" screamed Callie.

"What should we do?" shouted Marie.

"Panic!"

"That isn't an option Callie!"

"Panic some more!"

After coming to my senses, I fired into a nearby table, shutting the two of them up. I then blurted out everything at once.

"What did you do to my friend?! Are you the Squid Sisters?! What's going on?!" I screamed.

Marie seemed to come to her senses despite the fact that I was screaming at the top of my lungs holding a weapon while Callie cowered in the corner of the room.

"Who are you?" said Marie accusingly.

"I'm Christine's friend and I'm giving you ten seconds to explain yourselves!" I demanded.

"Explain ourselves?" responded Marie, "Why don't you go first?"

Did Marie just roast me? In the back of my mind, I fangirled. Even, when Marie had someone pointing I hydra splatling at her she still managed to be Marie. Hold on Jessie! Don't get distracted! They harmed Christine!

"Enough!" I shouted, "Why did you hurt Christine?"

"This octoling was spying on us." responded Marie calmly.

"Yeah, I wonder why…" I said sarcastically, "Maybe it was because two of the biggest celebrities in Inkopolis are in Octo Canyon."

"Actually we are part of the Squidbeak Splatoon," said Marie, "We are the protectors of Inkopolis and we have been monitoring your friend. An octoling spying on inkopolis' top defense force is actually very suspicious."

I looked at Christine on the floor. It always boils down to the, "because she is an octoling she is suspicious" point, doesn't it?

"That's not true!" I argued, "We were following that mean inkling!"

"Oh you mean Agent 4," said Marie, "She has actually been monitoring the octoling to and has found her highly suspicious."

"More like she's been bullying her constantly." I snapped back, "Look, Christine's been _**living**_ with me. I would know if she was doing something wrong."

"I agree!" piped up Callie suddenly. Wait hold on a sec. Isn't she the one who helped harm Christine? Why is she defending her?

Marie seemed just as confused as me.

"Callie, what do you mean?" she asked.

"I mean," responded Callie, "You haven't let me have a say in this at all Marie."

"Callie…" Marie murmured.

"Marie," she said as she went over and embraced Marie in a hug, "I love you but I can't support this anymore. The way I see it there is an inkling who is vouching for her. That's good enough to me. "

"But Agent 4…" Marie protested weakly.

"Agent 4 has...things she needs to work on." replied Callie, "We both agreed on that, remember?"

Marie sighed and returned Callie's embrace. I stood awkwardly at the scene realizing I was still pointing my weapon at them. Almost unconsciously, I lowered my splattershot a little.

"Hey!" said Marie as she addressed me sharply. Her tone surprised me and I raised my hydra splatling in defense.

"You are _**positive**_ that this octoling is innocent?" said Marie in authoritative tone ignoring my raised weapon.

It was kind've weird for someone to demand and answer when they were totally at my mercy but I decided to respond anyway.

"Yes," I responded.

At that Marie seemed to relax, "Listen," she began, "Despite how ridiculous it is to say to you we owe you and the ocol-, I mean, _ **Christine**_ an apology."

"What did you do to her?" I asked accusingly.

"She's unharmed, she just fainted." replied Marie.

"Well, in that case I have a lot of questions," I said, "No offense."

"We'll we have plenty of time…" said Marie.

 **Okay, it looks like this conflict is still wearing down but there are still much questions to be answered! Chief among them, Why does Agent 4 hate octolings so much?**


	21. Chapter 21

**Christine P.O.V**

 **(An hour or so later)**

My eyes slowly opened.

"Waky, waky." said a familiar voice.

I immediately stood straight up in bed with a gasp. Am in Octo Canyon? No, I'm in one of the beds in Cuttlefish's shack. Upon sitting up, I felt a hand grab my arm and saw the source of the voice.

It was Jessie.

"Hey, relax," she said, "It would suck to get knocked out for the second time today banging your head upon waking up."

I looked at Jessie and began stuttering incoherently, "How...How did you-! WHAT?!"

"Listen I know you have a lot of questions but to be brief I essentially saved your butt." laughed Jessie.

I immediately ignored her and embraced Jessie. I began to sob.

"Jessie, I thought I was going back," I cried.

"And _**I**_ thought you were dead so we'll call it even," responded Jessie.

I sniffed and cried a bit more. Not in a sad way but of happiness. I was alive! Not only that I was safe!

However, our reunion was cut short as another person entered the room.

It was that cheerful inkling. That one named Callie.

"Hey, looks like our guest is up." she said as she held a plate of crabby cakes.

I immediately tackled the inkling to the ground as the plate of crabby cakes smashed to the floor.

"Ow! Hey! Get off me!" screamed Callie in alarm.

Surprisingly, Jessie pulled me off her.

"Yo, chill for a sec," she said, "I haven't explained everything yet."

I calmed down and listened.

 **A few explanations later…**

Jessie explained everything to me while Callie rubbed her head with an ice pack. I must have tackled her a little harder than I thought. Octarian strength I guess.

Either way, Jessie told me everything that happened. She was also grilled me multiple times for waking her with my splattershot jr. I told her again and again that it was for her safety but she wasn't hearing it.

"Christine, we're friends and part of that is letting me help you. I know you hate this place and all but you nearly died!"

Ouch, she did have a point. Perhaps things wouldn't have escalated to violence if I had inkling there to explain herself with me. Speaking of violence I felt kind of bad for slamming Callie to the ground.

"Uh, sorry for attacking you." I said. "That looks like it hurts."

"It's okay!" she responded happily, "I understand why you did."

Suddenly, Marie entered the room. I immediately felt intense rage toward that inkling. Callie was different, she defended me from what I heard, Marie was the mastermind behind sending me back. The awkwardness was apparent to everyone in the room as my hostile face literally read, "Go jump in the ocean jerk."

The room was silent for a good minute before Marie spoke.

"This probably won't mean much but I'm sorry," she stated, "What we did was inhumane and stupid so I sincerely apologize."

I tried my best to look like I accepted her apology but I couldn't help but grimace. What that inkling did was irreversibly burned into my memory. I would never forget her trying to blindfold me and the memories that it brought up that I never wanted to think about it again.

Marie seemed to notice my hostility and spoke again, "Listen," she said, "it's just...it's just…"

Tears began to stream down the inkling's face and her voice began to crack.

"It's just...Callie...the octarians captured her...I didn't want to happen again," she cried, "so I became paranoid when I saw a new face seem to slip by unnoticed without gramps telling us. I'm so sorry."

Marie was sobbing now. I now had two options. One, I could let this inkling cry and feel the grief she caused me for once. Two, I could forgive her. I was honestly moving toward the first but then I realized something. Marie was experiencing the same pain I experienced. She had someone close to her hypnotized by Octavio. I know only to well how that feels…

I embraced Marie in a hug

"It's all right. I forgive you." I said.

"Really?" sobbed Marie like a child.

"Really."

After Marie, had calmed down I asked her, "Wait is Captain Cuttlefish your grandfather?"

"Wait how do you know gramps?" asked Marie.

"He let me stay at his place for a few days." I replied.

"Wait," said Marie, "for eel?!"

"Yeah," I said as if it were obvious.

"Than why didn't he tell us?!" screamed Marie.

"Actually," interrupted Callie, "I found this under some books."

Callie held her hands a slip of paper it read,

 **Ahoy Buckos!**

 **I'm off with Agent 3 doing a little recon so I want be back for a wanted to tell you I befriended an octoling about a week ago. You may see her in the square. She's a fine lass and be sure to say hi!**

 **-Cuttlefish**

 **P.S: Callie don't eat my crabby cakes. I know you eat them when I'm gone.**

"They were under the books you knocked over with your umbrella the other day." said Callie.

Marie facepalmed.

"So this really _**was**_ a misunderstanding!" she sighed.

"Even worse," said Callie, "I ate the Crabby Cakes."

"Well," said Marie, "This proves it, you're innocent."

"Thank you." I said.

"Additionally," Marie added, "You have my word that the Squidbeak Splatoon will ensure you will never be kicked of Inkopolis!"

That sounded amazing. I could finally stop worrying about that, I was truly able to stay her forever.

"Also," said Marie, "We're going to inform Agent 4 about this but I'm warning you she will not be too happy about it. You may want to stay away from her."

"We've been doing that!" commented Jessie.

"What's Agent 4's deal anyway?" I asked.

"Well," responded Marie, "Her parents were killed by octarians."

That didn't make sense to me. I mean outside of a few isolated instances we octarians never waged outright war against the inklings. This instance was unusual.

"She was a great fighter but when she took the job we noticed she was very...passionate," Marie continued, "Callie and I have tried helping her manage her anger but she's a good agent.."

"Crap!" said Jessie, "We have a match against her in a week!"

Well that was a problem. I didn't want to turf against Agent 4 again real or simulated.

"Well, no offense, Christine and I are going to get going." said Jessie, "It's been a long day."

"We understand…" said Marie.

"Please come again!" squealed Callie.

Jessie and I went through the exit.

 **Epilogue (not of the story but the chapter, seriously, I'm not done with this story anytime soon)**

 **Christine's P.O.V:**

I was...home.

It was raining outside so we had to move quickly once we got to the surface. It was unhealthy to be in that kind of weather not to mention unpleasant.

I took my usual spot by the window on the couch.

"You sure you don't want to sleep with me?" teased Jessie, "It may thunder."

"I'm good." I yawned.

"Jeez what a day…" said Jessie, "And to still think we have to face Agent 4 in a week."

"Yeah," I sighed.

"By the way, I took a look at your splattershot jr," said Jessie, "You basically trashed it hitting me. It was a miracle you were able to use it at all."

"Do you think we'll have to get a new one." I asked worrying I was going to give Jessie another expense.

"Nah," she replied, "If Kaya can't fix this then I'll be splatted."

"Well, that's good," I said sleepily, "Goodnight,"

"Goodnight,"

I rolled over and instantly fell asleep. I wasn't afraid of the rain anymore. It was weird. I felt like I was home. I didn't need to worry about getting kicked out of Inkopolis anymore. Maybe, I can relax. At least for a little bit. Even if life goes topsy-turvy again. I know I will have friends to support me...

 **Well, I think I finally tied together the first plot thread of the story. I feel I have gradually began to connect Christine with the Splatoon cast and I feel I've done a decently good job so far. A few days ago, I got a reader asking me when the next chapter was and I was truly touched by that...Seriously, your support really keeps me going. You all our the best. Now that the first, I'm hesitant to say "arc" because the story is nowhere near finished is complete, I hope to add in some nice fluff in upcoming chapters. However, I had a pretty cool idea for the next one…**

 **Merry squidmas!**


	22. Chapter 22

**Christine's P.O.V: (4 days until the match)**

Since the whole Octo Canyon incident things had been going pretty well. Jessie and I decided to relax and loaf around the house a lot. Kaya managed to easily fix my splattershot jr just as Jessie said she would. I honestly was impressed with Jessie's technical expertise. It was on par with an octarian.

I also was texting Marina a lot. Apparently, she had been busy working on a big concert that was being planned.

 _OctaCoola: So what's this concert about?_

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: You don't know?_

 _OctaCoola: Nope._

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: SERIOUSLY?!_

 _OctaCoola: Still have no idea._

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: Think. What is tomorrow?_

 _OctaCoola: Uh, February 28th?_

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: AND?!_

 _OctaCoola: I don't know. Is February 28th significant in anyway?_

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: OF COURSE IT'S SIGNIFICANT! IT'S VALENTINE'S DAY!_

 _OctaCoola: One, calm down. Two, I have no idea what you are talking about._

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: Valentine's Day is an inkling holiday where you express love for your friends, family, or your significant other._

 _OctaCoola: Sound's weird._

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: No, it's amazing! There's chocolates, dates, and valentine letters._

 _OctaCoola: Still sounds weird._

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: You know what. Just for saying that, you gave me an idea…_

 _OctaCoola: And what is that?_

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: You'll see…_

 _OctaCoola: Oh boy…_

Apparently Marina went offline for a couple of hours, presumably preparing her "idea". I got a text about this a couple of hours later.

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: HI!_

 _OctaCoola: Hey. You seem very peppy._

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: I sure am!_

 _OctaCoola: So what was your idea?_

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: I got you a date!_

 _OctaCoola: WAIT, WHAT?!_

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: I contacted a friend and I told them that you wanted to meet them at Crusty Seans for a Valentine's dinner._

 _OctaCoola: Are you insane?! Call it off?!_

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: And disappoint your date? You're not that heartless are you?_

 _OctaCoola: This had better be a joke…_

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: Oh come on. It won't be that bad. I found a nice person, a good friend of mine. Think of it as experiencing inkling culture._

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: Gtg. Pearlie's screaming at me to move my record table out of the way._

 _OctaCoola: WAIT HOLD ON!_

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: Bye._

At that moment, I went to slam my phone against the wall, than realizing that would be foolish, I decided to slam on my couch instead. It was less satisfying but arguably better then having to replace a squid phone. I began cursing loudly in octarian.

"REE! OHBOH! BWOOOOHHH!"

Jessie heard the commotion and came into the living room.

"What are you so mad about?" she inquired peeking through the doorway.

"Marine thinks she can spring a date on me out of the blue!" I shouted.

"Oh, I see how it is…" said Jessie playfully as she entered the room,"Your boy shy aren't you?"

I smacked my head in frustration at the word "boy". Jeez, inklings seriously don't know anything about octarians.

"Jessie," I said as I facepalmed, "I'm lesbian, all octolings are."

"You are?" Jessie asked confused.

"Yes!" I said in frustration, "Almost all octolings are female! Why would we _**not**_ be lesbian?"

"Sorry," said Jessie.

"Enough about octoling sexuality!" I shouted, "When I get my hands on Marina I'll-!"

"Now hold on," interrupted Jessie, "Isn't there the tinciest chance that Marina gave you a good date?"

"I've never dated before!" I protested.

"Oh," said Jessie slyly, "I'll teach you. Plue, I've got to keep this ship sailing."

"Rrrgghhhh," I growled, "Your on Marina's side too?"

"Yep," smiled Jessie, "Let me show you how it's done. It'll be good for you. C'mon."

I was going to protest but Jessie can sometimes be very convincing. Maybe it would be good for me to experience an inkling holiday for once. I sighed. So much for relaxing…

 **So while this isn't a shipping fic, I decided to through in a bit of fluff after the arguably serious tone of the last few chapters. Any guesses for Christine's date?**


	23. Chapter 23

**I actually did get a decent amount of responses guessing who Christine's date was going to be and everyone guessed Agent 3. Now let's see if you were right…**

 **Christine P.O.V (3 days until the match with Agent 4):**

Well, I guess I really stink at dating.

Jessie spent the _**entire**_ time between yesterday and know bombarding me with tips. I guess it was supposed to help me but in the end I was downright confused. How am I supposed to greet her again? Am I supposed to be assertive or casual? I eventually decided I would have to trust my instincts. Then I realized that I don't even _**know**_ this person, weren't you supposed to at least know a person a bit before asking someone on a date? This whole Valentines Day was weird not to mention completely nerve racking.

Jessie however was much more enthusiastic about my predicament even going as far to offer me her dress that she had lying around.

"You really don't have to…" I responded upon her offer.

"No," argued Jessie, "It's fine."

"I couldn't…"

"Christine," joked Jessie as she interrupted me, "I will literally through this expensive dress out the window unless you put it on."

So I did. And now I'm here, at Crusty Seans. I had to hand it to the old crustacean, he really knew how to spruce the place up. He added some candles on the tables to make it seem fancy and even took the liberty of wearing a suit. Actually, doesn't he never really wear anything? Isn't he by literal definition naked? I decided not to think about it.

Surprisingly, I was not getting any weird stares tonight. Most of the inklings around me just seemed to be enjoying their night out. Good. For once, I could be just another person instead of the boogeyman that everyone gossiped about.

I felt a tap on my shoulder.

"Uh, e-excuse me,"

It was an octoling.

"Are you Christine?" asked the octoling

She was in a suit with a little bowtie and looked a tad bit younger than me. Her tentacles were not fully developed and were small and drooped on the sides of her head which lacked the deep crimson red found in most mature octarians. My tentacles had only matured just recently. I'd say we may be no more than a year apart.

I looked at her confused and shocked. _**Another**_ octoling in inkopolis. Was this the date Marina set up for me?

"Yes I am." I responded as I regained my composure.

I looked at the octoling. She looked just as nervous as I was.

The octoling than extended her hand in greeting.

"Marina has told me so much about you," she smiled nervously, "I'm Eight."

As I shook her hand I asked, "Eight," I mused, "That's a strange name."

"Well," said Eight as she sat down, "I don't remember what my actual name and I was codenamed Agent 8 so I call myself Eight."

"Wait you're an agent?" I asked in surprise.

"Yes, I am." said Eight proudly, "Marina said you knew about the whole Squidbeak Splatoon thing so I reasoned it was okay to tell you."

Okay, now I was getting more confused. There was another octoling in Inkopolis? She's an agent?

"How does Marina know I know about the Squidbeak Splatoon?" I asked.

"Oh she's great friends with Callie and Marie," responded Eight, "They tell her about this stuff all the time.

"Well that's surprising," I remarked, "Now, I'm curious, how did you get to Inkopolis? You said you can't remember your name?"

"It's kind of a long story" blushed Eight. She didn't seem used to getting so much attention. She began to come across as a bit shy to me. I pray that Marina didn't drag her into this as suddenly as me.

"Well we got plenty of time." I said, "Last I checked, Crusty Sean said it would take half an hour to get the food ready for everyone so go on. I like stories."

"Well," said Eight, "if you insist."

Throughout the evening, Eight told me her story. It was quite interesting actually. I honestly thought I had a hard time getting here but Eight seemed to have it even harder. This octoling was tough as nails. She woke up with amnesia. Went through a bunch of tests. Took Agent 3 down in single combat (Seriously, how many Agents are there?) To top it all off, she took down a giant statue and saved Inkopolis.

"Jeeze," I said, "You're one tough octopus."

"Thank you." replied Eight.

"So how many of these Agents are there?" I asked.

"One, two, three, four, and eight." said Eight, "I haven't met Four though."

" _Good,"_ I thought. Four would hate Eight.

"Do many of the inklings know your an octoling," I said in a whisper.

"Not really," responded Eight, "I'm still a bit young to look like an octoling in the inkling's stories and textbooks."

Eight continued, "So do the inklings know you're an octoling?" she asked.

I hesitated, "Well..."

BOOM!

The candle at our table was extinguished as I felt a stinging sensation on my arm.

Rain.

Crap, so much for the romantic dinner Marina was planning.

All the inklings around us took off. Who could blame them? Rain, isn't enough water to kill you but does it hurt? Yes. Is it healthy to be out in the rain? No. Am I going to stand out here and get soaked? Certainly not.

I ran along with the inklings to a nearby by storefront and hit out under the roof. The few inklings under that roof gave me nervous looks and entered the store to get away. Will I ever stop getting that? I looked around and notice Eight wasn't with me.

Oh no, I lost my date in the rain? What a faux pas!

"Eight? Eight!" I called.

No response. I scanned the nearby area. I was say, ten meters, from Crusty Seans food truck. Looking around, I noticed a small figure under the table we were sitting at.

"Eight is that you?" I shouted, "Why are you over there?"

Eight turned around from under the table.

She was crying.

"I-I…" she sobbed, "don't like the rain!"

 **HAH! YOU ALL WERE WRONG! NOT AGENT 3! AGENT 8! HA! HA! *does default Fortnite dance* But seriously Agent 3, good guess and I actually need to introduce her in the story at one point. I will also be taking idea for OC's soon! Not now but soon! Lastly, I haven't been reading a lot of fanfiction lately as opposed to writing it so I'm not sure if this is something a lot of fanfiction writers had this idea or not but as far as Agent 8 and Christine (not anymore she got over it) being scared of thunder and rain I should give credit to** **GamerJosh2611 who had a vaguely similar event of Agent 8 freaking out over thunder in their story. I feel these instances are so distantly related and different in my story that it doesn't matter if I mention it or not but I got my inspiration for Agent 8 and Christine being scared of rain and Thunder from GamerJosh2611. If you want to read where I got the idea, read the early chapters of** _ **The tales of Agent 8**_ **(one of my favorite Splatoon stories, it's a good read)**

 **Whew! With that disclaimer out of the way as usual I love to hear your wonderful reviews! Hope you all had good holidays! Stay Fresh!**


	24. Chapter 24

**GOOD NEWS! We have another OC joining the story! Now, I was going to do a contest but this person was next in line after giving me an entry a month or two ago. Also, on an unrelated note I changed Agent 8 from saying "I don't like the rain to" "I'm scared of the rain" I felt I wasn't painting her fear enough. Either way thank you TurquoiseTriangle for your amazing OC! Enjoy!**

 **Christine P.O.V (3 days until the match with Agent 4):**

Wait, what did Eight just say? Afraid of the rain? I mean, I kind of understand being afraid of thunder but the rain? I mean other than a minor slightly painful sensation, rain wasn't that bad. It's not like it could kill you unless you were dumb enough to stand in the middle of a hurricane or something.

Then I realized, Eight probably hasn't experienced rain enough yet. We never had rain in Octo Canyon. I mean assuming you never saw rain before it was basically the sky darkening followed by loud noises and the sky opening up with an assault of a million tiny droplets out of nowhere. I can see why that would be terrifying for an octoling, even one that managed to save Inkopolis single handedly.

I called to Eight under the table, "Can you get over here?"

"N-no," whimpered Eight, "t-too sc-scared."

This was a disaster. Our dinner was ruined, we hadn't eaten, and my date had a deathly fear of rain. What a mess! I had to do something. The rain was showing no signs of letting up and Eight was showing no signs of even attempting to crawl out from under that table.

"Uh, hi."

I turned around to see a purple inkling with brown skin and some sort of special forces hat. He was...smiling? He was holding an umbrella. He seemed slightly nervous though.

"Uh, hey so I see you two may need a bit of umm..help?" said the inkling awkwardly.

My eyes narrowed. I was suspicious. This was the first inkling besides Jessie's friends whoever said a word to me. A total stranger. He wasn't confident though. Maybe he was worried I was going to attack him or something. Who knows? I don't know what the inklings say about me.

"So," continued the inkling, "I could let you borrow my umbrella for your friend if you want."

I still didn't trust this inkling. This felt like some kind of trick or prank but on the other side of the coin maybe her was genuinely being nice. Maybe some inklings were finally beginning to trust me. I looked over at Eight under the table. How could I say no?

"Sure," I said, "Thank you."

The purple inkling handed me the umbrella and I went over to Eight who hesitantly went out from under the table and under the shelter of the umbrella. We then walked back under the storefront to the inkling.

"Thanks again," I said handing the inkling the umbrella.

Eight sniffled and said, "Yes, thank you very much."

The inkling reached out for the umbrella and took it.

"No problem," said the inkling and he hastily turned to leave.

"Hey!" I said, "Wait a second."

The purple inkling turned around and gave me a confused look as if I was accusing him of doing something wrong.

"Why did you do that?" I asked.

"Do what?" said the inkling.

He was playing dumb. He knew very well how strange what he did was. An inkling helping an octoling totally warranted an explanation.

"Why did you help me?" I asked, "I know that you inklings talk about me. I know you all hate me."

The purple inkling smiled warmly, "Not all of us do," he said.

The inkling then continued, "There are a lot of rumors about you," he said, "They say that you're an interloper or your trying to kidnap an inkling and bring them back to Octo Canyon."

The inklings face then turned sad, "But when I saw you and your friend," he said, "I didn't see you that way. You just seemed like you needed a hand."

The inkling than scratched his head awkwardly, "I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable but you aren't anything like the others said you were."

I was touched. This was one of the only inklings I met who actually talked to me let alone impact me positively.

"This meant a lot," I said, "You really were kind to do that. Is there any way I can repay you?"

"Nothing needed." responded the inkling, "However, it would be nice to see you again. Why haven't I seen you at Sheldon's?"

"Who's?" I asked.

"He's the weapons dealer," laughed the inkling, "He's basically the go to for inklings to get their turf war stuff."

A faint glimmer of memory pierced through my mind, "Oh yeah, I think I've seen his shop."

"Well feel free to come over there some time," said the purple inkling, "I'm an employee."

"Sure," I said, "I'm sorry what was your name."

"Lavender," he said, "Look are you on a Turf War team?"

"Yeah," I responded.

"Than how the shell have you not been to Sheldon's?!" shouted the inkling.

"My captain says the powers that be don't want overpowered weapons in the hands of newbies," I said as I referred to the conversation Jessie had with me when he gave me the junior.

"Correction," said Lavender, "The _shopkeepers_ don't want newbies with overpowered weapons."

I noticed Lavender's shy demeanor was gone. He appeared confident if not a little arrogant. Maybe he was afraid of me or something at first, kind of like Sasha, but he really seemed to have dropped the nervous demeanor once we had talked a little while.

"Well let you in on a secret, he continued, "all the inklings have been talking about the big match."

"What big match?"

"The match where you guys face Shelly's team."

"Who?"

"You know the green girl with the glasses, kind of tall?"

"So that's what she's called," I muttered. I realized I never got Agnet 4's name.

"She didn't tell you," said Lavender, "Weird, anyways to be brief, everyone can't wait to see you lose to Shelly's legendary turfing skills."

"Oh joy," I responded. Great not only am I going to get creamed but all the inklings are going to watch?

"Well here's the thing," said Lavender, "I may be able to convince Sheldon to lend you some higher tier stuff."

"Really?" I asked. Would this inkling really do that for me?

"It really doesn't seem like a fair fight with just a splattershot jr does it?" said Lavender, "Just come to Sheldon's on Friday and I'll see what I can do."

"Thank you so much!" I said enthusiastically. Maybe I could stand a chance, if I had an actual weapon.

"Don't mention it," said Lavender, "People really should get to know you if they talked to you. See ya!"

And then Lavender was gone, off running, presumably to Sheldon's. It had stopped raining.

"He seemed nice," commented Eight.

"Yeah…" I sighed.

"Anyways since we got rained out let's try going to a diner or something," I said.

"I would but Pearl and Marina are expecting me back now to help with the concert." replied Eight.

"I'm sorry for the rain," I said.

"You can't control the weather,silly, it was nice talking to you for a while though," said Eight, "Is this the time we kiss or something?"

"Well," I said, "I think that's what Marina would want us to do."

"Would _you_ want to Christine," asked Eight.

"Sure," I replied.

We did kiss. I never kissed someone before outside of family. It was surprisingly not like those stupid ten second kisses that are full on the lips that you see in those movies that Jessie showed me. Those were exaggerations. But it was meaningful. A short kiss on the lips.

Afterwards, Eight and I both tried to hide our blushing.

"Thank you for helping me out like that with my fear," said Eight, "Goodbye,"

"Goodbye," I said.

And Eight left.

My heart pounded. That kiss felt...empowering. I know Marina dragged me into this but I may actually like this girl. I should try to ask Marina for her number…

Well this was my experience of "Valentine's Day". It wasn't what I expected but it worked. Hey, I made a friend and made a potential girlfriend with a kiss to boot.

I guess it wasn't so bad after all.

 **Well, that's a wrap. I also should note about my big disclaimer last chapter, I changed it from** ** _The Tales of Agent Eight_** **to** ** _The New Squidbeak Splatoon_** **about where I came up with my inspiration for this segment of Agent 8's surprising fear of storms despite her saving Inkopolis. Thank you for your OC again TurquoiseTriangle! I'm sorry I don't do this more often but I like to explore characters in detail and be meaningful when I put OC's into the story! Stay Fresh!**


	25. Chapter 25

**Okay, so I feel like I'm slowing down a bit with my work so please be understanding (school assesments and tests).**

 **Jessie P.O.V (match with/ Agent 4 tomorrow):**

Christine's date apparently went well. Of course she couldn't have done it without my masterful advice if I don't say so myself but what really surprised me was Lavendar.

"And I met this really nice inkling named Lavendar." said Christine excitedly.

"Wait what was his name?" I asked.

"Lavender," said Christine, "Why?"

"He was the fourth member of our team before you came along." I said

"Really?" she asked, "Was it a bad break up? You seem suspicious."

"The opposite," I said, "He was very nice about it and went to go work at Sheldon's. He's always been a nice squid. I haven't talked to him in a while though."

"Oh," commented Christine.

It was unusual that Lavender just came out of the blue helped Christine out but I was not suspicious persay. Maybe, he felt sorry for her or maybe he heard about our upcoming match and wanted to help me. When I see him I'm going to need to talk with him...

However, it's time we started focusing on our match with Agent 4 which is tomorrow and that's kinda a problem for a couple of reasons. One, we haven't got a lot of practice on. Two, I'm still not sure about Sasha and Christine working well together. And three, apparently everyone in Inkopolis wants to see Christine get creamed.

That last part really bugged me. I had been so busy talking to Christine, I was kind've out of the Inkapolis social loop considering I hadn't talked with anyone. Everyone wants to see Christine get her butt kicked? I don't think any inklings talked to her besides about Lavendar. Maybe, there worried that the scary octarian will splat them. Heck if I know but the least they can do is say it to her face. Cowards.

Well today, I'm gonna get the team together and actually get Christine a functioning weapon from Lavendar! Yesiree, we are gonna be organized and we are going to kick this Agent 4 jerk's butt! Well, I hope we will, because by the way Christine described Agent 4's turfing skills she sounds like some sort of monster.

Well first step in Agent 4 butt kicking is to get the team together so Christine and I decided to go on over to Kaya's house for a meeting before going to Sheldon's.

"I'm so nervous," said Christine as we walked, "What if we lose?"

"We won't," I said sternly, "Isn't it always like in the movies, the good guys always win?"

"Jessie," smiled Christine, "Hate to break it to you but this isn't a movie."

"Well," I said as I jokingly slugged Christine's arm, "Were still the good guys."

"Well Shelly is probably thinking the same thing," responded Christine.

"Shelly," I asked, "Is that her name?" Jeeze, the irony, the biggest jerkface in inkapolis somehow has the sweetest name ever.

"Yeah," said Chrisitine, "Lavendar told me."

"Why would Shelly be thinking she's the 'good guy'" I asked and with hint of sarcasm added, "She tried to kill you, what a great thing to do."

"Well," said Christine "Yeah, but she probably thinks _**I'm**_ the bad guy because her parents were killed by octarians."

"That still doesn't excuse anything!" I protested. Seriously, Christine was far too sympathetic for her own good. In my eyes, this Agent 4 person needed a good dose of my hydra splatling's ink. She tried to splat Christine. That's inexcusable.

We stopped walking as I realized we had arrived at Kaya's house. It was actually a pretty far walk from my apartment. It was on the outskirts of the city which was annoying because Christine and I had to walk past what seemed like every inkling in the city. I could feel their eyes on us. Waiting in anticipation for the upcoming match. Not all of them seemed like they wanted us to lose though, a lot of inklings kept a neutral expression. Maybe there were more inklings like Lavendar, more inklings that weren't absolute jerks toward Christine.

Kaya's house was on the outskirts of the city for a reason. It was at the city dump. Literally, it was right next to it. Kaya was probably the only inkling in Inkapolis who would ever want to live near a dump but her obessions with mechanics outweighed any concerns about being smelly. However, I for one am totally fine with not living near a blecky dump. I would go insane. Like, I literally have a secret arsenal of perfume in my room. No way, I would ever risk smelling up my home or myself for that matter.

I knocked on the door to her house, which funny enough, had that motorbike from a few days ago propted up against it. I guess Kaya was still making modificationsn because the engine looked a bit different. Actually, it was so big that I was worried Kaya was gonna have trouble riding that thing.

"Hey guys!" screamed an enthusiastic Kaya as she opened the door completely ignoring there was a motorbike there. With a loud crash, the motorbike fell on the ground fallowed by an immediate swear in human by Kaya.

"Kaya," I scolded, "the language."

"But I have to fix it now!" whined Kaya. Seriously, Kaya can be really immature sometimes.

"Oh no," I said sarcastically with my Marie level roasting skills, "I'm sure fixing something is unbearable considering it's what you dio twenty four hours a day."

That clamed Kaya up as she let us in. Sasha was already there sitting on the couch. The living room had a nice plush couch with a huge window which provided a nice big view of the dump. Wow, how pretty...

"Hey Jessie!" said Sasha happily but her face soon turned into a frown as she saw that Christine was with me. Great start Sasha.

So Christine and Kaya sat down on the couch while I adressed the team. Everyone listended attentively. Boy, maybe I should give an inspiring speech with inspiring music in those Disney movies or something.

"Uh, hey guys…" I said akwardly.

I immediately resisted the urge to bang by face against the wall. Way to inspire the team Jessie!

I tried again, "So you know why were here right!"

"To win the match tommarow!" shouted Kaya.

"Yes," I responded, "But more importantly we need to do this for Christine."

"Huh, why?" said Kaya.

Sasha chimed in in probably was the world's most blandest and neutral tone possible, "Everyone wants to see Christine lose to Shelly."

"That's right," I said to Sasha glad that she at least was making an effort to be social around Christine. I continued, "All the inklings want to see Christine beaten because of their stupid racism which we all as teammates don't want to see that happen."

I noticed Christine blushed at that statement as everyone turned to look at her. I'm not sure if she was used to all this attention. Well, this match was really about her anyway so she better get used to it.

"Well," said Kaya as she fiddled with her black tentacles as if to emphasize her point, "I for one don't to lose to that jerk either considering." I realized that she was referring to the time Agent 4 insulted her over her tentacle color. Is there anyone this inkling hadn't offended?

"Agent Fo-, I mean, Shelly, is a considerably good turfer and we have our work cut out for us if we want to beat her." I started, "If we stick to our roles we should be good."

I began to recite each members objective.

"Kaya, your our sniper." I said as Kaya excitedly pumped her fist in the air.

"Sasha, your our main turfer" I said as Sasha gave a weak smile to acknowledge me.

"And I'm our defender in case we get spawn camped or overrun." I proclaimed as I jabbed a thumb toward myself.

"What am I?" asked Christine.

"Oh," I said, "Our team lacks area coverage, you're gonna help Sasha turf the stage."

I immediately heard a thud as Sasha fell off the couch.

"WHAT?!" said Sasha outraged.

"We need to turf more area." I said calmly, "So she's sticking with you."

"I can do it on my own!" said Sasha defiantly.

"No you can't," I stated, "You both know that without Lavendar our turfing is mediocore."

"But-!" began Sasha but she was immediately interrupted by a punch in the arm from Kaya.

"OW!"

"Cut the crap Sasha," she yelled, "We all know you're scared of Christine!"

Sasha turned beat red and stopped talking. This worried me a bit. It was a big gamble to put Christine with Sasha. Either it would force them to work together or Sasha wouldn't cooperate.

"Well, I don't believe there is anything more to discuss." I said ignoring them, "I'm gonna get Christine a weapon."

"Awww," said Kaya, "Can't you stay and hang out?"

"No, sorry," I said, "I'm not going to keep Lavender waiting,"

"Wait," said Kaya, "Is Lavender giving Christine a free weapon or something,"

"Yeah,"

"Well that's nice of him," commented Kaya , "Way to pinch in for his prior team."

"Yeah, I know," I replied, "Have a good one."

Christine and I went out of the door and Christine immediately began almost screaming at me.

"Why did you put me with Sasha?" she yelled in a panic.

"We need a turfer to ink up area," I responded a matter of factly.

"But she won't work with me!" cried Christine.

"Listen, I'm still team captain and I think putting you as our turfer," I stated, "It will be good for her."

"Okay," said Christine calmed down a bit, "Sorry."

"It happens." I replied coolly as we resumed our walk to Sheldon's. We passed through the twist and turns of Inkopolis' streets. Now, I see why Kaya has a motorcycle. This is a pretty long way for my feet to walk. I should really get my hands on our motorcycle myself...

Suddenly, I noticed a mass of people ahead. Maybe about fifteen or more. Then I noticed the whole mass began to move toward us. I was confused at first but then I noticed to my alarm Agent 4 was leading the pack. She was flanked by those two green female inklings that were with her when she attacked Christine. A rather large male green inkling walking behind them. This must be her team but the other dozen of inklings had all sorts of tentacle colors which was really confusing.

Crap, crap, crap, crap. This doesn't look good.

I realized Christine was probably thinking the same thing because she looked like a nervous wreck.

"Christine," I whispered, "we should just walk a different route."

"W-What are they doing?" stuttered Christine nervously.

"I don't know, we should leave." I said.

"Let's go," responded Christine in agreement.

We slowly backed away and took a different route and surprisingly the crowd didn't follow us. What was up with that? Was that a mob or something? I mean I didn't see any weapons, torches, or pitchforks but I was pretty intimidated. Whatever it was, if Agent 4 and her team was in front of it then it wasn't good?

As I was contemplating these things I could see Christine visibly relax. Good. She has enough on her plate with Sasha already, which now that I think about it is totally my fault but its so we can win. And that would be much better for Christine.

However, as we turned a corner, we suddenly became face to face with Agent 4 and her followers. They were waiting for us! Both Christine and I were too stunned to move.

"Hi octoling," grinned Agent 4, "Nice to see you again."

I'm really getting sick of this junk! You got a bone to pick with Christine Agent 4, or Shelly, or whatever you want to call yourself? Fine! But your gonna have to pick with me first!

"Hey," I shouted angrily, "What the shell is your problem?! What do you want?!"

"Nothing," said Agent 4, "I just wanted to get some of the citizens of Inkopolis to deliver a message for the octoling..."


	26. Chapter 26

**Okay, so I understand I haven't been all that consistent updating this but allow me to explain. I have midterms in a week or two so while this fanfic is important to me, school comes first. Anyways let's see what Agent 4's up to shall we…**

 **Jessie's P.O.V:**

"A message?" I asked.

"Yes," said Agent 4 turning to the crowd behind her. She then pumped her fist into the air, "What so we want to tell the octoling?" she yelled.

"Get out! Get out! Get out!" chanted the crowd in unison.

I looked at these inklings with hatred, which is saying something because I usually don't get angry but right now I was fuming.

I began to yell, "Hey, you-!" but was soon interrupted by more chants of "get out" by the group of inklings.

I looked over at Christine. She looked stunned, like she couldn't process what was happening. She didn't say a word. She just stared wide eyed at the crowd chanting how much they hate her. No arguments. No resistance. No cuss words. All she could do was listen.

And then she ran.

Christine bolted like some sort of crazy person down the street, desperate to remove herself from the situation.

"Keep going," said Agent 4 jabbing a finger in Christine's direction, "don't let her get away!"

I nearly was trampled by about a dozen inklings as they all cheered in unison and ran after Christine. I was about to run after her when I heard Agent 4 speak in a hushed tone.

"Wait," said Agent 4 softly, "I need to ask you a question."

She was still standing there. She did not even take a step when the group went off to take Christine. Whatever she was asking appeared to be sensitive enough that she didn't want anyone else to hear. What the heck did this girl want with me?

"Why do you support her?" she asked curiously.

It was weird. Agent 4 didn't look at me with hatred. She looked asking a genuine question to another inkling. There was not hate in her eyes. For a second, just a second, she didn't look like a merciless Agent who wanted to see Christine fall, she looked like the inkling named Shelly.

"What do you mean?" I asked suspiciously.

Shelly adjusted her glasses.

"Why do you support the octoling?" Shelly asked.

" _ **First,**_ it's Christine," I responded harshly, "Second, why do you care?"

"It baffles me." she said, "You let what we were taught our whole lives was an enemy of our race into your home, let her on your team, and even though it damages your whole reputation you still let her stay."

"She's my friend," I responded, "She's misunderstood and has to deal with people like _**you**_ trying to make her miserable."

"And you don't think there's the _**tiniest**_ chance you're being deceived." said Shelly as she pressed the topic further.

"No," I said, "she's living with me for cod's sake!"

"How do you not know she just came up here because the octarian's lost," inquired Shelly, "and is just trying to get out of that hellhole."

"I see no problem with that," I said.

"But she tried to defeat us," said Shelly, "She fought for Octavio."

"That's not true," I said, "They her hypnotized."

"You believe that?"

"Yes."

"Listen," said Shelly, "Your heart's in the right place but you don't know what I know…"

"I know all I need to know." I snapped.

"Your a good squid," said Shelly, "I really hate it that I have to be against you along with the octoling."

"Really," I said sarcastically, "Could've fooled me."

"I'm serious, I hate it." said Shelly, "It would be so much better for you, me, and everyone in Inkopolis if you would kick the octoling out and make Inkopolis safe again. The inklings that I took over here are fighting for our home. You can to"

"I see how it is," I said coldly to Shelly, no not Shelly, Agent 4. "You're just trying to seduce me into betraying Christine!"

"You're not seeing it clearly!" protested Agent 4, "She's a killer! A killer who belongs underground with the rest of them!"

"Screw you!" I yelled and added, "See you at the match tomorrow!"

I then ran off to find Christine.

 **I hope your enjoying the Agent 4 related portion of the story. Please let me know what you think in a review! Stay fresh!**


	27. Chapter 27

**Christine's P.O.V:**

All alone.

I finally managed to evade the crowd of inklings and ducked into an alley.

Get out!

Get out!

Get out!

I couldn't stop hearing those words as they echoed through my head as I leaned against the wall.

Am I truly that hated?

The inklings didn't talk to me when I first got here. After awhile, I thought they were getting used to me.

I was wrong. They just kept that hatred bottled up, waiting to use it when they were ready.

I can't…

I can't…

I can't do this anymore.

Marina and Eight, they're so lucky. No one knows what they truly are and everyone loves them. Why can't I be like them?

Why can't I have black tentacles? Why can't I have short stubby tentacles? Why have to look like an octoling so much?

But no, I had to have regular octarian red tentacles. Even a creature as gullible as stupid as sea cucumber could label me as an octarian.

I felt a single tear stream down my cheek.

No, I won't cry. Crying shows weakness.

I sniffled and no more tears came. There's no way I can beat Agent 4 tomorrow. Unless, my teammates are all ridiculously good at turfing we are most definitely going to lose. I thought back to our fight in Octo Canyon. She was unbelievably skilled. I nearly was splatted fighting her but Callie's intervention by knocking me out with the roller put an end to the fight before Agent 4 could finish me.

Actually, did Callie do that on purpose instead of splatting me? She seemed to have been against the whole investigation against me in the first place. It's possible…

"Christine!"

I saw Jessie standing over me.

"I've been looking all over for you!" shouted Jessie, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," I said. I was lying. I wasn't.

"Are you sure?" asked Jessie.

"Yup," I responded, "Let's just go get that weapon from Lavender."

We decided to take the cautious route to Sheldon's place and avoided large groups of inklings so we wouldn't encounter Agent 4's group. I still was getting used to how nice Inkopolis looked. I loved the graffiti. I loved the colors. I loved the fresh air. I still would never get used to this.

Eventually we did reach Sheldon's shop and hurried in as not to be seen.

"Welcome!" said Lavender at the counter. He was obviously waiting for us.

"Where's Sheldon?" asked Jessie.

"He's out at the moment but he's fine with me giving you a free weapon if you guys promise not to tell anyone." replied Lavender.

"Thank you very much for doing this," said Jessie, "I know this isn't your team anymore."

"Don't mention it," responded Lavender, "Christine is a nice person. It's the least I could do."

"Yes, thank you." I said bowing my head in respect.

"Seriously it's no problem," said Lavender as he fiddled with what I could only presume were weapon parts in the back. He then gestured to the whole shop. "Okay," he said, "Pick anything you like."

"Seriously?!" I said.

"Seriously." responded Lavender, "Just don't take more than one thing so my boss doesn't splat me."

I did some digging around as Jessie and Lavender chatted it up. I wasn't listening. I was only paying attention to the massive quantities of weapons available. I had never seen so much weapons in one place in my life. Which is saying something considering how easy it is to get your hands on a weapon in Octo Canyon.

I looked around for a while and then saw something that caught my eye, an octobrush. Oh wow, the inklings have one of these things. I just loved my octobrush. I lost it when all the octolings were hypnotized.

"Can I have this thing?" I asked lifting the brush up. Oh cod, it feels like a dream in my hands. The inklings probably have so much more resources than the octarians have to make these thing. This felt a zillion times better than my old octobrush, while at the same time it had the same familiar feel.

"Sure," said Lavender, "A good choice. Would you like to test it?"

"Absolutely!" I said happily.

I tested it against a small dummy and it handled great. I easily was able to coat the floor in purple ink. Lavender was nice enough to allow us to practice our weapons in the training area and after a few hours of practice, I felt pretty confident about tomorrow. However, I reminded myself that we were still up against Agent 4. The Agent 4 who destroyed Octavio single handedly.

I yawned it was late and probably time to get to bed. Jessie and I said goodbye to Lavender. After a farewell, we went back to our apartment, had our dinner, and got ready to retire to bed.

I got on the couch and got ready to sleep but I found I couldn't relax. Jessie was about to go to her room when I called her.

"Jessie?" I asked.

"Yeah," she said groggily obviously ready to hit the sack.

"What if we lose?"

"I told you we won't," responded Jessie.

"Yes, but realistically what if we lose?" I inquired.

"Then we lose." replied Jessie.

"Jessie," I sighed, "I'm scared."

"Don't be," stated Jessie, "Even if we won it wouldn't change people's minds but don't worry we'll always be there for you."

"Thanks Jessie,"

"No problem," she yawned as she turned out the light and went to bed.

I didn't fall asleep for what felt like forever. I felt nervous. I'll be a single octoling standing up against Agent 4 who stood up to hundreds of my race single handedly.

Do I stand a chance?


	28. Chapter 28

**Hey guys (or gals) my midterms are OVER! I can now focus on writing. Agent 4 and Christine are finally going to duke it out! Who will win?**

 **Christine's P.O.V:**

The morning was a rush.

I actually was not very pleased with having to get up this early this time around. Oh cod, am I becoming an inkling? I mentally slapped myself. The inklings nearly lost the Great Turf War not being able to wake up early. I must never suffer that weakness.

After a quick breakfast, Jessie and I prepared to go out. I nabbed my mesh cap from Flow, for good luck. However as I was struggling to get my giant octobrush out the door I felt my phone buzz.

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: Hey!_

 _OctaCoola: Hi._

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: Good luck today! Pearlie and I heard about the match!_

 _OctaCoola: Thanks!_

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: Eight wishes you luck too._

 _OctaCoola: I'll need it._

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: Relax. You'll do fine! See ya!_

 _OctaCoola: Bye._

I put my phone back in my pocket and sighed. I was so nervous! If the biggest celebrities in Inkopolis found out about this then everyone in Inkopolis probably knows to.

"Hey Christine!" I heard Jessie shout from down the hallway, "Let's get going!"

"Coming!" I said snapping back to reality.

Let's do this.

We rushed to the turf lobby and I couldn't help but notice the unusual amount of Inkling's sitting in the lobby, particularly at this early hour. They must be coming to see the big match. I tried to avoid the dozens of eyes staring at me.

"Hey guys!" shouted Kaya happily holding a charger while she stood next to Sasha, who seemed to try to stand as far away as she could from me as not to be associated.

"Hello Kaya." I said.

"You ready to kick butt!" she yelled pounding her fists for emphasis. Kaya had literally a parallel opposite attitude compared to myself about the match. She was excited and confident. I wish I could say the same for myself. I was feeling butterflies in my stomach.

"Hello," said a voice as I saw a figure approaching us.

It was Agent 4, flanked by those two girls who I saw in my first day in Inkopolis and a rather short male inkling with a helmet.

No one on my team said a word back. Kaya's was visibly shaking and her face was red with anger, Jessie glared at her coldly, and Sasha looked slightly embarrassed as she tried to hide herself behind all of us.

"Well then I guess there is nothing to discuss," said Shelly, "Shall we start?"

Jessie voice shook as I could tell she was trying to keep her composure.

"Yes," she said with a smile, "Let's start."

We then exited out the back door to the lobby and went to the stage for the day, Blackbelly Skatepark where we met Judd.

Judd started us off, "Please take your pawsitions!"

We all moved to the other sides of the park.

"Ready?"

I was so nervous.

"Go!"

The team sprang into action as Sasha and I began running and turfing territory. It felt odd. The nervousness was gone. Have you ever had that feeling when your very nervous about doing something and all of the sudden when you actually do it, it isn't so bad?

Sasha and I eventually put some distance from our team with no enemies in sight. The only sound was our weapons as we painted the floor.

"So," I said to Sasha trying to be friendly as she painted with her splattershot, "Do you see anyone up ahead?"

Sasha continued to paint and completely ignored me.

"Uh, hey?" I said awkwardly as it was obvious she was doing this on purpose.

"Please..." said Sasha avoiding eye contact, "Just don't talk to me."

I felt my cheeks burn, this really wasn't the time but I suddenly became very angry at my teammate. At the very least, she could have given me a response. What a coward.

I began, "Wait just a min-!"

 _Tok._

I heard something land beside me softly on the ground.

Splat bomb!

Sasha and I dived into our ink just before an explosion of green ink rocked the ground.

"Hey octoling!" shouted Agent 4 from atop a ledge as she had a splatter shot trained on me.

I immediately realized how defenseless I was with my octobrush against a weapon of such range.

I broke into a run as I felt blobs of ink zip past me as Shelly gleefully fired from her perch.

"Sasha!" I screamed, "Fire at her!"

Sasha raised her splattershot and hesitated. She looked at me and then Agent 4 conflicted and unsure what to do. Crap. Throw away your bias against me and shoot Sasha! I'm getting clobbered right here!

I felt a blob of ink slam into me as I started to get inked and I felt my mesh cap fly off. I found a puddle of ink and jumped to safety before I took too much damage.

"My hat!" I screamed.

It was lying over in a puddle of green ink. I had to get it back before it got damaged from the incoming fire that was currently everywhere from Agent 4. I then suddenly heard the firing stop.

I peeked out from the puddle to see Agent 4 grinning, "Oh your hat?"

I realized with a sinking realization what she was about to do.

I saw her train her splattershot on my hat. There was nothing I could do, I only had a roller and she was too high up. No, no, no! That hat had too much sentimental value for me! That hat represented the kindness of one of the only people who ever accepted me! This was going to be too much to bear!

"NO!" I screamed in horror as I saw Agent 4's finger curl on the trigger.

 _SPLAT!_

Agent 4 never fired a shot.

I saw Sasha emerge from a puddle of ink breathing heavily as she had a splattershot pointed at the spot where Agent 4 once was.

She actually did it. She splatted Agent 4. I picked up my hat. Aside from being a bit wet from some ink it was in perfect condition. Sasha had saved my hat.

"Thank you," I said to Sasha.

"It…" she said but trailed off and then finished her sentence, "...was nothing."

"No seriously thank you," I said, "This hat means a lot to me and it was really selfless of you to do that."

I noticed Sasha began to blush a little at my compliment. She just stared at me, not sure of what to say back. Maybe she regretted helping me or maybe she's finally decided that I can be trusted.

After a moment of awkward silence Sasha gave a small smile and said, "Well, that inkling seemed like sort of a jerk to be honest."

"She is," I said, "Come on let's get going."

Sasha and I began turfing again but it didn't last long.

I saw the two girls that always followed Shelly around come out of nowhere armed with rollers from around the corner.

 _Splat!_

I didn't even know what hit me.

Both Sasha and I were both brought back to the spawn point and wasted no time trying to regain our lost territory from the two rollers.

Unfortunately we didn't even reach our location. The other team covered a _**massive**_ amount of ground. Sasha and I tried to re-turf but we were hit by a charger round by what I could only presume was the male inkling on the team.

Again, Sasha and I were dragged back to the spawn point. I soon realized the spawn point was becoming an area of chaos as the enemy had pushed itself almost on top of our spawn point. I could see ink flying everywhere as I could see Jessie and Kaya desperately trying to prevent the other team from overrunning our base.

The map was a sea of green.

We were losing.

"Christine!" yelled Jessie frantically. "Get over here and help! We're being overrun!"

Sasha and I ran over, weapons at the ready.

 _Splat!_

I hammered one of the girls attacking Jessie with my brush.

 _Splat!_

I splitted the male inkling with the charger. With a few minutes left, maybe I could turn this around.

"Hey octoling!" shouted a familiar voice.

Oh no…

Jessie and Sasha immediately began firing at Agent 4 but to no avail, Shelly was just too fast. Leaping out of the way, Agent 4 trained her splatter shot on her targets.

 _Splat!_

 _Splat!_

Kaya then tried to duck under cover to get her charger ready but Agent 4 simply turned around and fired.

 _Splat!_

There was less than 30 seconds left of game time. I was the only one left. I was stunned. This was the power of Agent 4, able to solo an entire team all by herself.

"So," sneered Agent 4 with her splattershot on her hip, "How does it feel to lose?"

 _20 seconds left_

"You…" I growled.

"Don't you see? Inkopolis hates you and you can't even win a turf war." she said gesturing to the massive blobs of green which took up the map. "There's nothing for you here."

 _15 seconds left_

I lost. I knew this was going to happen. The map was at least three quarters green ink. It wasn't even close.

 _10_

If this is how it's going to be…

 _9_

Then I'm going to at least do the one thing I can...

 _8_

Splat the person who caused all this…

 _7_

"Raahhhh!" I screamed as I lunged towards Agent 4.

 _6_

Agent 4's face was one of utter surprise, I had the upper hand.

"What the-!"

 _5_

 _Boom!_ I connected! However, Agent 4 rolled out of the way at the last second to avoid being splatted by the full impact of my brush but she still took a significant bit of my ink. She stared at her hand, now covered with my purple ink repulsed as if it were sewage.

She growled, " _ **You**_.."

 _4_

" _ **DARE…"**_

 _3_

" _ **HIT…"**_

 _2_

" _ **MMMMEEEEEE!"**_ screamed Agent 4 in rage.

 _1_

 _SPLAT!_

I was sent back to the spawn pad. The game was over. As I respawned, my teammates waited for me, all with sad looks in their eyes.

The score was 75.67-24.23

"Well, its over," said Jessie quietly. All of us knew we weren't going back to the lobby, we were going to stay right here.

"We knew we couldn't do it," said Kaya glumily, "That jerk is above our league."

"We gave it a shot," said Sasha with a sad smile, "We did it for Christine and I say we did a good job."

Kaya suddenly exploded.

"Hypocrite!" she yelled, "You don't give a crap about Christine!"

Sasha didn't respond.

"I say your the reason we lost you piece of-!"

"Kaya, stop." I said calmly.

"What?" said Kaya confused.

"Sasha played well," I said, "She proved during my time with her that she does care."

Sasha did. Saving my hat, a seemingly meaningless gesture, meant more to me than any of them ever could understand.

Sasha simply smiled but said nothing.

"Well," Jessie said, "I'd say we gave it our all, you can all go."

"What about Christine?" asked Kaya.

"She'll be fine," said Jessie, "You two just leave."

Kaya and Jessie then walked off. As soon as they were gone, Jessie turned to me.

"Christine," she said, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," I said, "let's go home."

It was still midday but I was in no mood to walk around Inkopolis. We took a few backroads and made our way to Jessie's apartment.

I didn't talk at all. I was deep in thought, thinking.

By the time we reached our apartment I had made my decision.

Jessie still seemed worried about me. "Christine?" she asked, "Are you sure your okay?"

"No," I muttered, "I'm not."

My rage was beginning to take over.

" _ **I'M...**_ " I said in rage, " _ **NOT!**_ " I kicked over a lamp in anger and it fell with a crash.

"Hey!" snapped Jessie, "I know your mad but please don't wreck my apartment!"

Even in my anger, a tiny voice managed to say, " _Yeah, maybe it would be a good idea not to wreck your friend's apartment."_

I decided to assault the couch instead and pounded on it with my fists.

"Why does it matter anymore!" I shouted at the top of my lungs, "I can't do this anymore!"

"Christine," said Jessie, "I'm so sorry! I wish there is something I could do."

I took a deep breath to calm myself down. There was no need for further anger. I had my decision anyway…

I proceeded to go over to the pile of clothes Jessie had let me borrow and took out a hoodie and sunglasses.

"Christine," said Jessie, "What are you doing?"

"The only thing I can do," I said, "I've made my decision."

"What decision?" said Jessie.

"No one will know that I'm an octoling anymore," I said as I drew the hood over my tentacles and put the sunglasses over my octarian eyes. It was the perfect disguise. "For all intents and purposes I'm an inkling." I responded

"What?" said Jessie, "But that's giving up!"

"I'm not giving up," I said, "I'm simply solving the problem."

"Christine," said Jessie, "I don't mean to sound cheesy but I like you the way you are. Don't live as something your not. Be yourself!"

"No," I said, "I am hated. There's no other way."

"But Christine…" started Jessie.

"Enough!" I said, "It's my decision!"

"Christine," said Jessie, "This isn't you. Your stronger than this!"

That hit a nerve. Maybe Jessie didn't realize what she was saying but it hit a nerve nonetheless.

"Oh just because I don't want to put up with daily abuse doesn't mean I'm strong?" I said coldly, "Is that it?"

"No, but you can't give up!" pleaded Jessie, "Your better than this!"

"I'm not giving up!" I shouted, "Can't you understand that this is the only way!"

"Christine, you need to calm down…" said Jessie.

"I don't need anything!" I snapped, "If your a true friend respect my decision and leave me be!"

I spurred through the door and slammed it behind me angrily. I'm being stupid. I know I am. Jessie doesn't mean to insult me but I'm too angry to process that correctly. Know one thinks correctly when they're angry. I just need to get away from all this. That's why I'm becoming an inkling.

I'm going to go into Inkopolis right now and be normal for once or "give up" as Jessie puts it.

I exited the apartment complex. No more is the hated and tortured Christine, the octoling. As of now, I am Christine the inkling.

 **Not only was this chapter long but it was heavy! What do you think will happen next now that Christine has decided to shove away her octarian side...for now at least.**

 **I hope you are enjoying the story and I would love to know what you think!**

 **Review and Stay Fresh!**


	29. Chapter 29

**Well here's another chapter! Enjoy!**

 **Christine P.O.V:**

It had worked.

I walked confidently into the square with my hood and sunglasses and no one even questioned me. Why was I so surprised about it anyway? If Inklings are so gullible that they can't even recognize two totally undisguised octolings why would they recognize me? Figures.

I walked past the turf lobby and realized that it was much less crowded now that our match (probably an hour ago at this point) However, the square was hot with excitement and chatter.

I put myself near a group of inklings and listened...

"Shelly did a good job," remarked a skirt wearing inkling in some sort of school uniform, "I almost feel sorry for the octoling."

"Don't be," replied another girl with a hairpin, "I just hope Shelly sent that octarian a message because if she thinks that she can infiltrate Inkopolis she has another thing coming!"

"Agreed," responded the inkling in the school uniform, "All this chaos is making me hungry, let's go grab a bite to eat at Crusty Sean's."

And with that the inklings left. I heard various similar conversations shortly after. It was so surreal to here the inklings talk about me without knowing I was only a few feet away. I still didn't get it. Why do the inklings hate me so much? I'm not out to infiltrate Inkopolis! I'm just here to be in the surface and escape Octavio's influence! What part of that do the inklings not understand?

I just decided to stand in the square for a while. Probably hundreds of inklings passed me and nobody noticed! It felt like a super power! I finally could be just like everyone else! Normal. Not some scary octarian out to plot everyone's doom. Just a normal inkling out to catch up on the hottest trends like everyone else.

"Uh, excuse me," said a voice.

I felt a tap on my shoulder. I jumped back. Oh no! Have I really been found out already?

I looked behind me expecting to see angry inkling but I at first didn't see anyone.

"Uh, down here." said the voice.

I looked to see a small pink inkling staring up at me. She was at least a foot below me but she looked to be about my age. I immediately became on edge as I recognized her as one of the inklings in that crowd from the other day.

"Uh, can I help you?" I asked nervously.

Pleasdon' ' 'trecognizeme.

"I'm sorry to bother you," said the other girl, "but would you be interested in doing a run with me at Grizco's?"

A wave of relief fell over me as I realized this girl hadn't recognized me. However, I immediately felt intense confusion because I didn't understand a single word the inkling was saying to me.

I then stupidly blurted out, "Who's Grizzco?"

Cod damnit.

"You don't know?" said the short girl, "Are you new or something?"

"Uh yeah," I said trying not to blow my cover, "I've only been here a few days."

"Oh, well that makes it even easier," said the small inkling teasingly, "Grizzco is the owner of Grizzco Industries and he allows us to get eggs from Salamoids in exchange for a bunch of cash!"

My eyes widened at that. Salamoids? I didn't have very fond memories of them. The activity of getting golden eggs was considered dangerous in Octo Canyon. Yeah, we tried to get eggs. Golden eggs were a decent substitute for alternate power. By the inklings chipper demeanor it was probably a safe bet that the inklings had a respawn pad or something. Us octarians didn't have that luxury for salamoid egg gathering or any other similarly unsafe activities. We didn't have the power for that kind of technology and I know many an octarian who went to gather salamoid eggs and never returned…

"Well what do you say?" said the small inkling excitedly.

Go do the dangerous activity that I made sure to steer clear of in Octo Canyon? Fight salamoids for fun? Shell no.

"Sorry," I said politely, "It's not my cup of tea."

The short inkling suddenly seemed a bit upset, "Uh, I don't mean to be rude or anything but I really need a fourth member for our group so Grizzco can accept us and the morning shift is almost over," she said glumily, "Is there _any_ chance you can reconsider?"

I strongly resisted to feel pity for this inkling but I couldn't help it. I reminded myself over and over that this short inkling was one of the inklings in the crowd and that who gives a hoot for how she feels but I still felt guilty regardless. Besides that, why would an "inkling" turn down something turf related? I would look really weird. Wouldn't that go against the whole reason I stormed out of friend's apartment, to be normal? What's the point of this if I just keep trying to hide in the shadows? I'll have to be super careful though.

"You know what?" I said, "Sure."

"Oh thank you, thank you!" said the inkling as she started shaking me vigorously like a child. I noticed my glasses and hoot were beginning to slip and I gently, but firmly pushed her away.

This inkling was hyper.

"Uh, you mind not doing that?" I said as casually as someone who just shoved a person could say.

"Oh," said the short inkling concerned, "I'm sorry its just that I thought I wasn't getting anyone on my squad and I was happy..."

Now I just couldn't comprehend it. This inkling willingly gives me personal space when I'm an "inkling" yet when I was an octoling she chased me telling me to "get out". It was like interacting with a completely different person.

"By the way what is your name?" I asked.

"Oh it's Blue," responded the short inkling.

I looked at her ridiculously. This inkling was pink, why would she name herself Blue?

"If you don't mind me asking," I inquired curiously, "Why is your name Blue?"

"I don't know," shrugged Blue, "That's just what my parents named me."

"Sorry," I said, "You must get that a lot."

"It's okay," beamed the inkling, "What is your name?"

Crud. I hadn't thought of a different name yet! I have to come up with something quick!

"Uh," I began, "uh...it's Marly."

Stupid! Like that was a natural response!

But the inkling showed no sign of suspicion, "Cool!" she squealed, "Now let's hurry and get to Grizzco's before they close! I've got to save up for the sailor outfit after all!"

Blue ran off expecting me to fallow. I breathed a sigh of relief. The inkling tendency for gullibleness had not yet failed me. I tried to remind myself that this inkling was one of the one's in the crowd but my heart betrayed me. She was just acted too differently. She was polite. She was nice. Not mean and xenophobic. Why must it be this way? Why do I have to disguise myself to make friends? I feel good about not having people yell and give me looks and all but..I can't help feeling a sense of hollowness. Was it really a real friendship if this inkling doesn't even know who I really am?

"You coming?" yelled Blue noticing I was lagging behind.

"Yeah," I said, "I'm coming."

 **Callie and Marie BONUS P.O.V:**

"So what kind of cop do you want to play?" said Marie.

"Bad cop!" screamed Callie.

"Callie you're too nice for that." replied Marie.

"But you asked!" interjected Callie.

"Whatever, I'm the bad cop and your the good cop!" argued Marie.

"But I don't wanna-!" began Marie but she soon clamored up as the door to the cabin opened.

Agent 4 had entered the room.

"Hey Callie! Hey Marie!" said Agent 4, "Sorry I'm late, it took me a while to find my gla-"

Agent 4 stopped talking. Callie and Marie both had serious expressions on their face. Which was unusual because Callie always smiled.

"Uh," said Agent 4, "Is something wrong?"

"Yes," said Marie sitting down, "We called you down here to call an important meeting."

"About?" said Agent 4 sitting down as well.

"Your behaviour towards Christine." said Marie.

"You mean the octoling?" inquired Agent 4, "I'm trying to get her to leave."

"Agent 4," said Marie said, "We already discussed with you that the octoling is to be left alone and protected."

"You don't understand!" said Agent 4 raising her voice a bit, "Your playing right into her hands, even Cuttlefish, you're all being fooled!"

"Calm down Agent 4," said Marie seriously, "There's a difference between healthy suspicion and just plain ignoring the facts. We as Agents choose the first."

Agent 4's face became red as she pounded her fist on the table, "You don't understand what they do when you let them deceive you!" she shouted, "I should know, my parents knew, and when they made that mistake, their death was the consequence!"

"Agent 4," said Callie, "I understand why you feel this way toward the octoling but the evidence supporting her plight is overwhelming and by what we've seen your conduct has been atrocious."

"I'm not accepting that piece of trash into Inkopolis!" growled Agent 4, "We won the turf war, why do we have to let our enemy into our city!"

"Please Agent 4," said Callie, "You should get to know her, she's actually pretty nice!"

"I'll splat her first!" retorted Agent 4.

"Don't say things like that!" yelled Marie, "Listen, you either let the octoling be or I'll suspend you!"

Agent 4 gave Marie a worried look.

"You wouldn't!" she said.

"I would!" said Marie.

"Look at you!" yelled Agent 4 as she stormed out the room, "Threatening to fire the only one capable of protecting Inkopolis from them! You're playing right into their hands!"

Agent 4 slammed the door on her way out.

Callie winced, "Your not actually going to fire her are you?"

"No," said Marie, "Octavio's still out there."

"Then what can we do?" asked Callie.

"I don't know," said Marie burying her hands into her tentacles, "Agent 4 has always had a problem with octarians, we should have addressed this earlier."

"I know," said Callie sadly, "She's a great agent but she's always had...bloodlust." Callie then gave a little hopeful smile, "Maybe," she began, "maybe we can convince her that Christine is nice."

"You underestimate the power of bias," said Marie, "Look what it did to me, I was so concerned with protecting you I ended up nearly sending her back."

"Marie," said Callie, "Don't beat yourself up about it. It ended out all right."

"It doesn't change what I did," responded Marie, "Look I can't imagine what's going through her head. Her parents were killed by octarians after all."

"That doesn't excuse anything!" said Callie frustrated.

"I know," replied Marie, "But we can never truly understand someone until we jump in their ink and swim in it."

"Let's just hope Agent 4 calms down," said Callie.

"Yes," said Marie, "Let's hope..."

 **It's interesting that someone reviewed and asked about how Callie and Marie were going to do about Agent 4 because I was planning to write about it at some point. It seems that Christine is feeling a bit apprehensive about her choice? What will happen next with Christine and Blue (who is an oc by the way, shoutout to innotsorry!) Remember to stay fresh and review!**


	30. Chapter 30

**Christine meets another inkling but she still has to be careful with only sunglasses and a hoodie to obscure her features! Shoutout again for Blue as a fantastic OC! Thank you for your continued support.**

 **Christine P.O.V:**

Blue and I stood in front of a large building labeled "Grizzco Industries"

Blue bounced up and down excitedly obviously hyped to fight salamoids and collect Golden Eggs. In contrast, I wasn't too excited, not only was I nervous about the whole thing but I would have to be sure not to give away my identity. I was beginning to regret my decision.

"The others that I invited are coming in a sec," said Blue happily, "Let's go inside."

Well, no backing out now.

The inside of the building was hardly furnished, the room we entered had stray cables snaking along the floor, weird buckets and crates of unknown supplies, and more golden eggs I had ever seen in my life hanging from nets suspended from the ceiling. My cod, whoever was running this operation was doing so very efficiently! The entire octarian army, only had a fraction of the golden eggs that were housed in just this single room! I looked at the eggs in wide eyed wonder.

"Pretty aren't they?" said Blue noticing my expression.

"Uh-huh," I muttered still in a daze gingerly reaching for one of the transparent eggs absentmindedly.

"Keep your paws of my eggs kid!" shouted a voice that scared the living daylights out of me. I literally had to stop myself from almost tripping over one of the cable lining the floor in surprise. That would have been considerably bad actually considering I would be falling into a net full of eggs which I was told explicitly not to touch, not to mention my disguise could fall off which would be even worse.

I looked left and right trying to find the source of the voice.

"You should look at your boss when he's talking to ya!" said the voice again.

"Oh please Mr. Grizz," said Blue to a statue of a bear that was sitting on a water cooler, "She didn't mean anything and nothing's broken."

I looked in disbelief at the statue. A talking statue? Did it have speakers or something? Even my octarian eyes could not deduce what kind of weird technology (if any) was in that statue. Really strange.

Suddenly the door to the room opened and two inklings came in, both blue and male, and they looked shockingly similar. I imagined they were twins."

"Hey guys!" said Blue excited, "Sorry, Marly was it? These are some two randos I asked earlier. Now we can take the shift!"

"Not yet," said Mr. Grizz sternly, "The second to last group needs to finish their shift, you all suit up in the next room so your ready."

All of use obeyed and entered what looked like a dressing room with racks of overalls and boots to put over our clothes as well as a couple of hats.

"So," said Blue addressing the twins, "I never was able to get your names"

"I'm Nemo," said one of the inklings. He then gestured to his counterpart and said, "And he's Ethan."

"Cool!" said Blue as she tried, but failed, to put on a pair of trousers that were way too big for her, "I'm Blue and this is Christine."

I waved but remained silent. I didn't want anything to give me away. I made a note to stay as far as away as possible from the rest of the inklings in this room.

"Did you hear what happened just now?" said Nemo to Blue.

"No, what?" siad Blue finally slipping on a pair of trousers that fit her.

"You know that octoling who's been snooping around Inkopolis," chimed in Ethan, "Shelly wrecked her in a turf war match. We saw it."

"You're kidding!" said Blue enthusiastically.

"Nope," said Ethan, "Everyone's hoping that Shelly will find a way to get that octoling out of Inkopolis but this is a huge win on her part. Soon, we may be able to finally live without an octarian spying on us."

"Yippee!" said Blue excitedly, "No more octarians!"

I stood stone still throughout the entire conversation. For some reason, all my confidence of my newfound "power" of hiding in plain sight melted away, just like that. I felt vulnerable. I wanted to run but I couldn't. I was beginning to shake involuntarily out of fear.

"Marlie," said Blue who fortunately didn't seem to notice my nervousness, "You should really begin getting your stuff on or Mr. Grizz is gonna yell at us."

With sudden realization, I realized everyone in the room was almost completely done putting on their gear. I hadn't even started I then realized another problem, the hat.

Oh no!

I couldn't put on the hat right here! That would involve taking off my hoodie and exposing my octarian tentacles to everyone! What will they do if they find out? Run away? Beat me up? Splat me in a panic? I began to sweat profusely. I needed to think of an idea. Fast.

"Sure…" I said casually and began to put on everything else but the hat over my clothes to buy me some time. By the time I had nothing but the hat to put on I had an idea. A stupid one but it was my best shot.

"Uh…" I asked blue with my hoodie still up and trying to prevent my lip from quivering, "Is there a bathroom?"

"Now?" asked Blue in obvious annoyance, "Grizz is gonna be ssooo mad."

Please be a bathroom!

"All right," Blue said sighing, "there's one down the hall but why didn't you go earlier?"

"I can't control my body." I responded already running down the hall, "I'll be quick."

Inkling gullibleness thank you so much.

I eventually reached the door to a ratty looking bathroom that I honestly would assume hasn't seen a janitor in at least a year and quickly smooshed on the hat, carefully concealing any stray tentacles.

I looked at myself in the mirror and sighed. I was still in shock of how nice but vehemently hostile toward octarians Blue was. What if she did find out? I would lose a friend for sure but is it even fair to call her a friend? This is too much stress. I want to be home with Christine. It's so much safer there and I don't need to put up a facade when talking to Jessie. She just accepts me for who I am.

Poor Jessie. I probably really upset her. I need to apologize to her when this is all_.

"Marlie!" shouted Blue pouding on the door and interrupting me from my thoughts, "Hurry up!"

I sighed again and slowly opened the door to be back with my "friend."

 **I'm done with another chapter! We're finally at chapter 30! I'm honestly surprised how far this fic has progressed!**


	31. Chapter 31

**Really sorry I haven't updated recently! This chapter was bit challenging! Either way enjoy reading!**

 **Christine's P.O.V (a minute or two after the last chapter)**

So this was Salmon Run…

I was holding a splattershot, standing besides Blue who was holding a charger. We were on a small island away from the city with a giant radio tower on top. It was actually getting rather late as the sun was setting casting a golden glow across the yard.

I was really nervous. What if something goes wrong and my hat gets splatted off? What if these lifesavers that Blue was talking about don't work?

A blast of a siren signified the wave had started and just like that we all lept into action.

"Marly!" shouted Blue pointing to me, "Stick with me! Nemo and Ethan you guys spread out!"

Nemo and Ethan obliged and ran off excitedly to splat some salamoids.

"Uh…" I said to Blue, "Are you sure this is safe?"

"For the millionth time it's perfectly safe!" said Blue as she motioned toward the lifesaver on her uniform that would supposedly inflate and save us instead of letting us get splatted. "Oh look," said Blue excitedly, "Here they come!"

To my horror I saw a group of small salamoids appear out of nowhere coming towards us. Despite Blue's excited expression, I was terrified. Frantically waving their spoons and snapping their maws open and shut, I was stood frozen in fear.

Blue looked at me like I was an idiot, "What are you standing their for?" said Blue ridiculously, "Shoot or I won't be able to charge up my charger!"

That snapped me out of my daze and I frantically began to fire at the salamoids which I easily splatted. They then dropped a few precious golden eggs which Blue immediately scooped up in her net.

"Nice!" said Blue, "Let's just get these to the egg basket so Grizzco can receive them!"

"We put them in these?" I said motioning to my net.

"Yeah!" beamed Blue, "Just like_!"

Blue was interrupted as she grimaced uncomfortably and shifted into squid form involuntarily falling into a tiny life preserver. I was confused at first but then saw a tiny calling salamoid that we must have missed gleefully whacking its spoon at Blue's helpless squid form.

"Agh!" said Blue's admittedly diminutive squid form, "Gross! Get it off me!"

I immediately fired at the creature, splatting it which caused an explosion of ink to splatter onto Blue which caused her to immediately turn back to normal.

"Thanks!" said Blue

I gave her a small smile. I guess the lifesavers did work and admittedly...splatting that salamoid was a little exciting.

The rest of the wave actually turned out to be pretty fun even though I was trying as hard as I could could not to get near splatted so my group couldn't see my octopus form in the lifesaver. Salmon Run felt great! It was a constant race to meet Mr. Grizz's quota and it involved so much cooperation. Honestly, it felt more like a game then work! I forgot about everything. I forgot about my troubles as an octarian, Agent 4, my spat with Jessie, everything. Maybe this is why inklings like to turf so much? Maybe it's too immerse themselves so much they don't have to worry about their troubles.

The first wave was a breeze. We got a resounding congrats from followed by a new set of weapons.

Then things got difficult.

Much bigger salamoids began showing up and Blue and I were constantly on our toes trying to get mobbed by screeching salamoids.

"Hey Marly!" shouted Blue holding a new charger granted to her upon the beginning of the second wave.

"Uh, yeah?" I said as I splatted a few salamoids.

"It's time to use our secret weapon!" said Blue excitedly.

I was confused. Secret weapon! What did she mean by that?

"What are you talking about?" I yelled as I grabbed a golden egg.

"Come on!" said Blue, "I'll show you!"

Blue than lead me around the map to the large rusty tower in the center.

"Ta-da!" said Blue enthusiastically gesturing to the tower.

I still didn't get it. Blue may as well have been gesturing to a pile of dung.

"Blue," I said, "We already are behind on our quota going halfway across the map to reach here. How is this tower going to help us?"

Blue simply gave me a big grin.

"Simple," responded the diminutive inkling, "I get on top of there and wreak havoc on the salamoids below with my charger and you scoop up the eggs!"

I looked up at the tower. It must be at least fifty feet tall if not more. Not only was it rusted but falling off that would surely kill you and I don't know if these life preservers protect you from that sort of thing. I mean getting splatted is one thing but breaking your entire body in a fall is another. Either way it didn't seem safe at all.

"Uh, Blue?" I asked, "This doesn't seem like a good idea…"

"It's fine!" said Blue as she began to scale the tower rapidly.

"Blue, seriously, this is stupid you could get seriously hurt!" I protested as Blue was already pretty high up.

"Seriously, relax!" shouted Blue from above, "I've done this a million_!"

 _Crunch!_

I heard the sickening sound of creaking metal as I saw one of the beams supporting Blue's hand snapped even under her tiny arms pressure because it was so rusted. Blue realized a split second too late what was happening and flailed her arms to find a hold as her body tattered over but it was too late and Blue fell backward off the rung she was standing on to the ground. She began screaming deliciously as she plummeted toward the ground.

You know that they saw time slows down in adrenaline situations? Well I can tell you that's true as soon as Blue began to fall my mind began to think at an almost impossible rate as time slowed to a crawl. Blue was about twenty feet up which could shatter her skull if she were to hit the ground the wrong way or at the very least seriously damage her tailbone. Either way if I didn't do something Blue would probably die or be paralyzed for life. There was no time to contemplate. No time to judge whether this inkling, the same one who chased me in the crowd, was worthy of saving. All I could do was act or do nothing.

In that split second, I chose to act.

I did the only thing I could do.

I failed my arms wildly hoping to catch and at the very least mitigate Blue's fall. It was an almost futile attempt to prevent the inevitable but I had to do something.

As time began to speed back up, what happened next was a blur. I felt a giant weight suddenly slam me to the ground so much that my arms probably were bruised.

My head was spinning as I opened my eyes to find myself in a sitting position with Blue miraculously, no impossibly, in my arms. My tailbone and arms really hurt and I felt like throwing up because I had the wind knocked out of me but Blue was safe. Blue was breathing heavily and so was I but eventually Blue was able to have enough cognition to stare and look at me.

What confused me is that she looked scared.

At first I reasoned she was just shaken from the near death experience but she continued to look at me with wide eyed fear.

Then it clicked.

I probably didn't realize it from the shock of the fall but I felt my head and felt the familiar squishy feel off my own tentacles. I looked to the ground and the sunglasses I had on lied cracked and broken on the floor.

Just like that I was an octoling again.

No.

 _ **NO!**_

I suddenly kicked Blue off of me and bolted back to the Grizzco Industries building. I'm a fool. I knew this couldn't last! I'm so stupid to think that I can make friends and act like an inkling! I'll never be like them! I'll always be an octoling!

Hated.

Feared.

Despised.

Tears streamed down my cheeks but I don't even bother to try to act tough and stop them. Pathetic, not only have a lost a friend but I've also lost my resolve. All that's left of me is a crying pathetic octoling running away.

 **Well, I'm sorry that this chapter ended on a bit of a sad note but cheer up! The story will continue! Please let me know what you think in a review! Stay fresh!**


	32. Chapter 32

**So I had a review asking how Christine is going to leave Salmon Run without finishing the wave and this chapter is going to actually start from the main Grizzco building so I just thought I shout clear that up. I'm going to assume the inklings would have some way to exit Salmon Run for any reason such as an emergency or something, I honestly don't know how and I'm going to consider unimportant but I'm going to assume inklings have a way to exit Salmon Run if they want to.**

 **Christine P.O.V:**

I burst back into the main storage area in Grizzco's nearly knocking over several nets of golden eggs.

"What the_!" said in confusion, "Kid, the wave isn't done yet!"

I ignored him and ran to the changing room to escape this mess.

"You're fired!" shouted from down the hall as I ran as fast as I could.

Like I care, I'm never coming back here.

I ran into the changing room and slipped off my overalls as fast as I could. My arms were still sore from catching Blue but I ignored it. I was just taking off the boots when I heard movement down the hall.

Oh no! I hadn't even put on my shoes yet! The last thing I needed was to be cornered in here with an angry inkling. I imagine at least one inkling was chasing me.

But it was too late! The door to the dressing room flew open and Blue stood blocking the doorway. She still was covered in ink breathing heavily as she probably exerted herself to bring herself up here.

Suddenly, I started to feel unsafe. I was cornered in a room with an angry inkling blocking the door. I didn't even have shoes on. I was in a vulnerable position. I didn't like it. Considering my first encounter with Shelly, I was not ruling out the possibility of a physical confrontation. Then again, I was probably much bigger and stronger than Blue so I could probably take her if push came to shove.

"Leave me alone!" I cried.

Blue didn't take a single step back but she didn't advance forward either. I got a better look at her expression, it was not one of hostility but of general confusion. "Marly, I'm confused," she said, "What's going on?"

She paused for a second and then took a short gulp in nervousness before adding, "What are you?"

"You know what I am." I said coldly. "I'm an octoling."

"Why did you disguise yourself?" asked Blue suspiciously.

I looked at Blue with disgust. Why did I disguise myself? I began to turn angry. Oh, I'll tell her the answer.

"Because of people like you!" I sobbed throwing my Grizzco hat at her causing Blue to leap back in fright. I was beginning to boil over with emotion. I wasn't being coherent. "Because I wanted to be like you for once!"

Blue looked at me nervously and it looked she was seriously debating on running away but didn't. "W-What are you talking about?" said Blue.

"I wanted be one of you!" I cried angrily, "I wanted to be an inkling for once!"

Blue said nothing but I continued.

"You don't know what it's like!" I sobbed, "You don't know what it's like to go up here and constantly be bullied for how your cod damn tentacles look!"

Blue looked like she just went through a washing machine. She was dumbstruck at my outburst and she took a few seconds to actually respond.

She took a deep breath before speaking, "Why did you save me?"

That question took me aback. I sniffed and tried to compose myself so I could actually think properly instead of bawling all over the place. I thought hard. Why did I save Blue? I mean she was one of the inklings in the crowd who chased me around Inkopolis but...I don't think I could just led someone die. I mean even if it was Shelly or Octavio who was falling, I don't think sitting there and watching someone get splatted would be something I would be capable of doing. As cliched as it sounds, I don't think there is honor in vengeance especially at that level. Plus, wouldn't I be no better then the octoling everyone presumes I am if I just let someone die like that?

I took a deep breath and then said, "Because I'm not going to let someone get splatted. Simple as that."

I let that soak in as Blue processed what I said.

"I…" began Blue but she couldn't seem to find the words.

Then it happened.

Blue embraced me in a hug. The kind of hug when someone truly wants to be forgiven and is sorry for what they had done.

"Oh Marly," she said, "I'm so sorry."

"It's alright." I responded.

"And to think I said those things about you right in front of you…" said Blue her voice starting to crack, "I feel awful."

Somehow, I really didn't want this small inkling to cry.

"Hey," I said, "Please don't cry. It's alright."

Blue looked up at me in disbelief as if she couldn't believe what she was hearing, "How can you say that after everything I did?"

"I'm not going to do any good for myself making more enemies." I said, "You were thinking what everyone else thought. You probably never saw an octarian in your life so I can forgive that you were a bit scared."

"Marly," began Blue.

"Please," I interrupted, "Call me Christine."

"Christine," said Marly, "I'm going to make sure no inkling will think that anymore. I'm going to tell everyone I can what you really are like."

My eyes widened. That...that would actually be amazing. If Blue did that that could potentially turn everyone's opinion of me around.

"You would do that for me?" I asked.

"It's the least I can do." said Blue, "And may I ask a favor even though I really don't deserve to?"

I was a bit confused. What could this inkling possibly want?

"Could you do Salmon Run with me again?" asked Blue, "I truly enjoyed it."

"Probably not," I said, " fired me."

Blue simply blew it off, " does that all the time." said Blue, "I've literally been 'fired' about three times."

'For what?" I asked.

"Well," blushed Blue, "I used to be even shorter than I was now and couldn't reach the lip off the giant basket so he 'fired' me a couple of times."

I couldn't help but laugh. Just trying to imagine Blue jumping to reach the basket was downright hilarious to me somehow."

Blue tried to stop blushing but snickered, "Yeah I guess it was kinda funny when I think of it."

"Well, I actually may want to go regardless," I said, "I still feel like I don't want to push my luck after butchering the run. I'll come back some other day."

"Okay," said Blue, "But please come again,"

I smiled. _**This**_ is what I wanted to do all along. A real friend. I was stupid to put on some mask to have some fake friendship. This was real. Blue now knew I was an octoling and to be honest it was kind of relieving. I didn't need to have the stress of trying to hide my identity every second. Shelly, you may have won today but I scored myself my own little victory.

"Yes," I said, "You can count on it Blue."

 **EPILOGUE (no not of the entire story, of the chapter):**

 **Jessie's P.O.V:**

I had been trying all day. Christine had been gone for over three hours.

I had called Lavender, Kaya, and Sasha but no one had seen her. Maybe she's gone for good. Maybe she would never come back.

Aw screw it! This is my fault isn't it! I tugged my tentacles in frustration. I should've done better in the turf war! I shouldn't have gotten the team to practice more! Maybe we wouldn't have lost!

Then the door opened.

It was Christine.

"Oh cod Christine," I said as I ran and embraced her in a hug, "I'm so sorry, I_!"

Christine put up a finger telling me to hush for a second.

"No," said Christine, " _ **I'm**_ sorry. You were right. I'm not going to hide who I am anymore."

"Oh Christine," I said, "Did something bad happen?"

Christine smiled.

"No," she said, "The opposite."

My face lit up, "Really?"

"Yes," said Christine, "I'll tell you everything on one condition."

"And what is that?" I asked.

Christine then grimaced as her stomach growled, "We do it over dinner," she winced, "I'm starving."

I smiled. Christine it's good to have the old you back.

 **Well despite losing the match to Shelly, a.k.a Agent 4, Christine actually ended the day on a good not while also learning an important lesson and making a new friend. I noticed that the tone of this chapter was a bit grim so I'll be sure to write some fluff to make up for it. Thank you for all your support everyone! Please let me know of how you thought I handled this day for Christine with the turf war and its aftermath. And as usual, Stay Fresh!**


	33. Chapter 33

**I'm back again for another chapter! Please enjoy!**

 **SPECIAL MINI CHAPTER:**

 **Shelly's P.O.V:**

I refuse to understand it.

When I destroyed that octoling in turf war, I expected everyone to feel reassured that I was there for them and to have a boost of confidence. I thought maybe it would be the way to drive the octoling out. The final blow so to speak.

But something different has been happening...

I've heard talks, rumors. People are saying that that octoling saved an inklings life. People are starting to hesitate. I don't believe it personally, an octoling doing something other than survival or self benefit disregarded all logic I knew. I have seen them all the time in Octo Valley and in Octavio's rants. Always stealing things, trying to get more power. No, this octoling couldn't have saved an inkling.

Even if that _**were**_ true and that octoling _**was**_ anything other than a selfish scheming monster, it wouldn't change anything. If we were to let one good octarian in, one _**anomaly**_ , more octarians would fallow, the _**bad**_ majority. Did we not drive them underground for a reason?

Still, I will never forgive them for what they did though...Never…

My parents died opening the door to a stranger

I remember looking at two puddles of ink as if it were my blood only to stare up at the soulless mask of an octoling as she watched in glee after splatting two inklings.

" _We'll let you off easy you brat," she said walking out the door, "Maybe if you splat yourself you'll see mommy and daddy again."_

I remembered those last words and in my childish mind I truly believed it. I didn't know it at the time, but I nearly committed unintentional suicide on multiple occasions in my early years. Eventually, I realized that the truth was my parents were never coming back and I would just have to deal with it.

I still don't understand what kind of motivation even an octarian could have to do such senseless violence. If they had looked at what they were opening the door to. If they had only paused for a second to realize what they were letting in their home, they would probably still be alive. No inkling deserves to go through what I had to so if some octoling thinks they can try the same ploy with this city I'm going to have to stop it.

Honestly, protecting Inkopolis hasn't been such a bad job though. Normally an inkling would shrink at the idea of facing off in mortal combat with the octarians but I took the job with glee. I was finally able to protect everyone and exact vengeance on the octarians for doing what they did to me. Plus, being a friend of the squid sisters is a nice bonus.

However, while they are nice to hang out with, I think they are too naive. I have refused to meet Agent 8 despite they insist she would be a good partner. Although I do like their other friends, the two inklings, Pearl and Marina. Marina especially, I enjoy her vocals but she has a bad knack for styling her tentacles like an octoling which not only looks weird but won't be good if some smart inkling were to point that out. To be mistaken for an octoling would be downright embarrassing for a public figure like her.

Callie and Marie were foolish, however, to let this octoling in Inkopolis and now...this may be my last chance if all the other inklings become as deluded as she is. I must protect everyone. I can't...I _**won't**_...let Inkopolis fall because we were too stupid to realize who the enemies were.

Octoling, I swear, you will never deceive me and you will never be able to stay here. On my word.

 **This was kind've a bonus chapter. I put a lot of heart into Agent 4 and she is one of my favorite character's and I'm trying to not have some typical vengeance villain stereotype. While that is part of Agent 4's motives, she has other one's to and she's able to justify them enough even though Christine has proved herself to be a decent person. Perhaps, Agent 4 may not even be completely in touch with reality...**


	34. Chapter 34

**Hey, sorry for the wait. Here's another chapter!**

 **Christine's P.O.V:**

Jessie and I were taking it much more easier after the whole turf war thing the next day. We mostly just laid around the house, listened to music, and watched movies. Overall, I was considerably enjoying not having to do much. I just needed to relax after the entire stress of preparing for the big match against Agent 4.

I reflected on how Blue said she would talk to everyone she knew about me. I decided that if that was the case, it would be better if I didn't show my face around Inkopolis for a while and let everything sort itself out. Despite everything that happened, it felt good to end yesterday on such a good note by befriending Blue. I realized, that even if I had some challenges to overcome, I was so lucky to be up here. The quality of life is excellent, the sights are beautiful, and I don't need to worry about Octavio's oppressive army of hypnotized octarians. Any octoling would kill to be where I was right now.

I heard my phone buzz as I layed on the couch this morning. Lazily, I grabbed it and saw a message from Marina.

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: Hi!_

 _OctaCoola: Hello._

 _DJ_Hyperfresh:_ _1 (800) 255-3700_

 _ ***Authors Note: For any person that is wondering if this number references anything, it's actually Nintendo customer service.**_

 _OctaCoola: What did you just send me?_

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: Eight's number!_

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: I thought it would be weird texting for her all the time. Particularly since you're a cute little couple now! 3 3 3_

 _OctaCoola: Say that again and you're blocked._

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: Calm down, it was a joke._

 _OctaCoola: It's fine. See ya._

 _DJ_Hyperfresh: Bbbbbyyyyyyeeeeee!_

I sighed. Marina is nice and all but sometimes that hyperactive octoling can really wear me out. I punched in Eight's number on my phone and sent a text.

 _OctaCoola: Hi._

 _8: Hi._

 _OctaCoola: Marina gave you my number._

 _8: There's something I wanted to ask you._

 _OctaCoola: Yeah?_

 _8: Callie and Marie are having lunch today at Cuttlefish's. They wanted you to come._

I hesitated. Last time I was at Cuttlefish's and with Callie and Marie, Agent 4 nearly splatted me. However, that was all a misunderstanding and Marie vowed to make sure I was able to stay in Inkopolis so perhaps they were trying to make amends. Plus, Eight would be there anyway.

 _OctaCoola: Sure._

 _8: Great! See ya!_

 _OctaCoola: Bye._

I got off the couch and addressed Jessie, "Jessie," I said, "Callie and Marie invited Eight and I to go over to Cuttlefish's for lunch so I think I'll be going out."

Jessie expression immediately became one of a fangirl, "OMG! The Squid Sisters' invited you to lunch!?"

"Yep," I replied.

"You're so lucky you know that?" said Jessie.

"I guess," I said as I went out the door because if I wanted to make it to their place by the lunch hour then I would have to go out now.

"And Christine," added Jessie seriously, "Please be careful,"

I looked back and Jessie and I could tell she looked genuinely concerned. I realized how scary it must have been when I charged down there without her after I knocked her out with a splattershot.

"I'll be fine," I assured her, "I'll be sure to call you when I'm coming back."

Jessie simply nodded and I went out the door and onto the streets of Inkopolis. The streets were only a fraction of the activity as they usually were and looking up I could see why. The sky was grey with heavy clouds that looked like they might burst with rain any second. I hoped Eight was already underground with everyone else because I can't imagine her possibly being able to trek out if it started to rain and not have a heart attack. Well, I for one was actually grateful for the clouds because that meant that there would be much less inklings to deal with.

I walked down the streets and found the grate that I originally came up to Inkopolis in. I quickly scanned the area and made sure nobody was watching and shifted into octopus form and jumped in.

Within a few seconds, I was there at Cuttlefish's shack and landed with a thud on the ground.

I was immediately greeted to a familiar voice, "Christine!"

Eight was rushing over to me waving excitedly and I could see Callie and Marie sitting at a small cheap plastic table that was hastily set up outside the shack.

"Hello Eight!" I said happily.

"Hi!" said Eight, "We're already set up so come on!"

I was immediately sat down with Eight at one side of the table while Callie and Marie sat at the other. Callie and Marie greeted me before bringing out a bowl with a hefty serving of crabby cakes that looked slightly burnt as well as some lemonade.

"Hello Christine!" said Callie as I sat down, "It's been awhile!"

Yeah, it had been. It was honestly surreal to be here with Callie and Marie again considering how last time it was under such serious circumstances. It felt obvious that the two siblings were trying to be as nice to me as possible. Marie did not have on her serious demeanor and Callie was actively trying to be as peppy as possible. I admired their effort to make things right between us.

"Yes it has been awhile," I said as I took a bite out of a crabby cake but immediately was repulsed with an awful taste in my mouth. These crabby cakes tasted _**nothing**_ like the ones' I had at Cuttlefish's. I gagged and choked it down to be polite as I tried not to throw up. I looked over at Eight and surprisingly she was also trying to choke down a crabby cake but she was doing a considerably bad job hiding it and I could see her face was turning noticeably green. I decided to wash the bad taste down an poured myself some lemonade which _**also**_ tasted horrendous.

Who made this stuff?

I looked over at Marie at the other side of the table who gave Eight and I a funny look. I guess Eight and I weren't doing a good job hiding our displeasure. She looked at us suspiciously and poured herself some of the disgusting lemonade and took a big glug of it. Immediately, Marie turned around and spewed it all over the ground.

Callie looked at Marie in confusion. "Marie, what's wrong?" asked Callie worried.

Marie looked accusingly at Callie, "Callie you were in charge of making everything so what in cod's name did you put in this lemonade?"

Callie scrunched her forehead as she thought, "Let's see, I put in lemon, water, and sugar."

"Sugar…" muttered Marie as if a lightbulb had lit up inside her head. Marie than got up and entered the cabin before coming out with a sack of some sort of baking mix.

"Callie," growled Marie angrily, "What does this bag say on it?"

"Salt?" said Callie as she read it.

"You put _**salt**_ in the crabby cakes you sea slug!" yelled Marie as she gave Callie a whack with her umbrella.

"Ow!" yelled Callie, "It looked white and powdery to me!"

"Typical Callie," teased Marie, "Always being salty, even when you cook."

Eight and I immediately roared with laughter at Marie's hilarious burn and from there things got much more casual. A few minutes later, I soon found myself lost in conversation.

"How is everything in Inkopolis?" asked Callie munching on some of Crusty Seans food that Marie brought down after she decided throw away the Crabby Cakes and the lemonade.

"It's good," I said being sure not to mention Shelly especially in front of Eight, "I befriended an inkling in Salmon Run."

"Really?" chimed in Eight, "It's fun isn't it?"

"Yeah," I responded remembering the adrenaline and the thrill of it, "It was very enjoyable."

"Well, I've been doing some work at Three's place," said Eight, "Helping her out with a few odds and ends."

"Wait, there's an Agent 3?" I asked.

"Yep," said Eight, "I'm staying at her place."

"Oh joy," I joked, "What's next Agent 100?"

"Well technically there's only five of us," explained Marie, "We skipped 5,6, and 7 although Pearl and Marina help us out occasionally even though they aren't agents."

"Yeah," replied Eight happily before turning to Callie and Marie and saying, "Although, you really should introduce me to Agent 4. I would really like to work with her one day!"

At that it felt like a cold wind had washed over the table and extinguished all the warmth. Callie, Marie, and I all gave knowing looks before Marie actually said something.

"We will," she said with a smile, "But Agent 4's really been busy helping us but we'll do it the first chance we'll get."

I looked at Marie in amazement. She was able to lie very confidently. It was impressive.

"Cool!" said Eight not suspecting a thing, closing the subject.

We then moved one to talk about more cherry things. Marie repeatedly took playful jabs at Callie which was hilarious and Eight told me a bit more about how she was doing. All too soon we had to leave…

"Well," said Eight, "I gotta go! See you!"

Eight then proceeded to leave but not before giving me a hug. We all waved goodbye as she jumped through and I readied myself to leave as well.

"Well thank you very much." I said politely, "It was a pleasure."

"Wait," said Marie, "We wanted to ask you something…"

I looked at Marie and realized she wasn't smiling and had a serious expression.

"It's about Agent 4…" she began.

 **Well sorry for the long wait but I was having a hard time deciding what to write and I decided we needed a bit of fluff however it looks like things are getting serious though. Please review and Stay Fresh!**


	35. Chapter 35

My eyes widened at Callie and Marie's question. What did they want to ask me about pertaining to Agent 4?

"What is it?" I asked with a small hint of suspicion in my voice.

"We heard Shelly hasn't been treating you all that well." said Marie.

"That would be an understatement." I said with my arms crossed.

"Well," said Marie, "We had an idea to help Shelly get over her fear of octarians and maybe, just maybe, she'll be on good terms with you."

I raised an eyebrow. The idea of Shelly and I ever being on good terms seemed both tantalizing but also impossible. It seemed that no matter what I did, she hated me. No matter how hard I tried to prove myself, Shelly hated me. However, the possibility of this was too good to resist.

"What is this idea?" I asked still not entirealy convinced.

"Now, before I go any further," said Marie with an eerie tone in her voice, "Would you like to help us save the octolings?"

I looked at Marie like she was crazy. Save the octolings? She said it so casually as if it were on her daily to-do list. It seemed like a joke not to mention impossible. If the Squidbeak Splatoon has those resources I imagine they would have done it already. I was about to tell Marie that that was a funny joke and to please actually say what she meant to say but something stopped me.

Memories.

I remembered my little bunker with a rusty old kettle that lead to the main octarian city. Sure, it was not the best place to live but it kind of felt like home before the other octarians went on a rampage hypnotizing us. But in particullar I remember my roommate, an elite octoling who took me in and showed me the ropes of the military. They called her Kelp, because like all elite's she addoned her head with the stuff but she put so much of it one her hair that you could practically not see her tentacles anymore. She was basically my best friend I ever has even compared to Jessie, which is saying something. She got hypnotized with everyone else. After I lost her, I lost my bunker, my octobrush, all the other octarian species who I _**thought**_ were my friends, everything. I would give anything to be able to have all that back, particularly my roomate.

I guess I tried to put everything aside, even Kelp, when I got up to Inkopolis but after Marie brang it up, it seemed impossible not to. It would be unfair to stay up here and enjoy myself while the rest of my kind suffered. After all, wouldn't that make me fit the description of the selfish inklings that I had been taught for so much of my life to hate.

"That would mean everything to me if I could." I responded.

"Well," said Marie, "Do you know what Calamaria Inktation is?"

I had no idea what she was talking about.

"No," I responded.

"Well," said Marie, "It's a song and it somehow reverses the effects of Octavio's hypnoshades."

I banged my head on a rock by accident which broke the hypnoshades but I do remember hearing weird music. I wanted to believe them but the whole concept seemed crazy.

"So wait," I questioned trying to understand, "Your saying that the song nullifies the hypnosis?"

"Yes." replied Marie.

Callie chimed in, "Just don't question it."

"So why haven't you tried this before?" I asked.

"Well two reasons," said Marie, "One, Callie and I can only sing so loudly even with a speaker. Two, we would probably be splatted before we could utter a note."

"I still don't see how I play into this." I said.

"Simple, I have a question for you." explained Marie, "Is there any place in Octo Canyon that you know of that could potentially broadcast the song to as many people as possible?"

"The UFO." I said without hesitation. Octavio resides in a UFO where he gets a nice big view of his domain. If you had _**really**_ loud speaker, you could probably broadcast a song for miles."

"Okay," said Marie, "Here's the plan. I've gotten Sheldon to work on a extra loud killer whale. If you wish, you can help us."

Now I was really confused. "What are you implying?"

"I want you to be our Agent 7," said Marie "You're an octarian which means you not only are able to blend in and are immune to your kinds' ink."

She was right. Octarian ink is a special kind only we can secrete and even if hypothetically an octoling wanted to change her ink, it requires a good deal of concentration and a few minutes. I could basically take a bath in octarian ink if I wanted to.

This plan that seemed ridiculous at first, but now it seemed like it could actually work. Was I really going to take the role of saving my race? I never thought I would take the mantle of something so important but...what if something went wrong? I can't really see that happening but it could be possible. I would be splatted for sure if I failed.

"Also Shelly will be helping you." added Marie.

What?! That was the most idiotic thing I could possibly think of! I'm not sure how far Shelly would go but I was not ruling out the possibility of Shelly just letting me get splatted. I would trust anyone but Shelly if it were a life or death situation.

I immediately lashed out at Marie, "Are you joking?!" I yelled, "That's stupid, she'll jeopardize the mission!"

"It's not stupid." said Marie, "How else are you supposed to navigate Octo Canyon?"

"Yeah you're right," I said sarcastically, "It's naive. I'm not sure what kind of ink your swimming in but I don't trust her."

"I understand why you say that," said Marie not losing her composure, "but…"

Marie pretended to wipe something in her eye but I could tell she was struggling to hold her emotions in.

"I know this…" began Marie, "I know this sounds cheesy but Agent 4's in pain Christine! She can't move on, ever since she took this job she's been obsessed. It's not healthy for her to continue this but if we fire her she'll have nothing. This job's all she has. This job's her life."

Marie gave me a genuinely sorry look. "It's so unfair for me to ask you this after all that happened but please help her. I'll be in communication with all of you and if anything bad starts to happen, I'll order her to stay down."

I was conflicted. I felt like Marie was being naive but at the same time I wanted to save my race. Additionally, what if this actually helped Shelly? I weighed everything in my mind and made a decision.

"Yes," I said and embraced Marie in a hug.

Marie was surprised, "What are you_" she exclaimed surprised.

"Thank you," I said, "You don't know how much it means to me. I can finally save everyone. I can save my race"

"Well," said Marie as she hugged back, "I'm glad I can help. It's the least I can do."

I then heard a gushing noise as Callie shouted, "Incoming!" and I heard a large crash come from the exit followed by a cloud of dust. I then saw Eight uncomfortably splayed on the ground. She must have came in at sixty miles an hour or something because the crash was deafening. She looked to be a bit wet.

"Christine…" she whimpered, "It's raining can you...help me?"

"Sure," I laughed as I pushed aside a stunned Marie who immediately grabbed me by the arm before I was able to take off.

"Wait!" said Marie released me and handed me her umbrella, "Take this."

However, I could hear her mutter something under her breath.

"Three days."

I said goodbye and walked Eight home, thinking of the future to come.

 **BONUS:**

 **?'s P.O.V:**

I did it.

Finally, I had completed all the tests and collected the four thangs.

And it was all thanks to that phone. If it weren't for him, I wouldn't have figured out how to get to the promised land. I would finally be free. I would be able to see the surface.

Although when I presented the Four thangs to the phone, they looked peculiar when put together.

"Is this a blender or something?" I asked the phone.

"No number 10,007, of course not." said the phone, "It is the entrance to the promised land! Step in don't be shy!"

The contraption looked funny but I trusted the phone. He got me this far after all. I stepped in.

"This is it. Are you [ERROR] ready to ascend to the higher plane?" asked the phone.

I noticed my face was wet and realized tears were streaming down my cheeks. Tears of joy.

"Yes," I said to the phone, "Thank you for everything."

"You are welcome," said the phone and I heard a small click.

Then it happened.

Suddenly to my horror. The green ink swirled all around me swishing me painfully around the contraption much like a blender that the contraption resembled.

Oh cod...it's actually a blender.

"What is going on!" I screamed at the phone as part of my body began to liquify due to being exposed in ink that wasn't my color.

The phone didn't respond. I frantically pounded the glass. I couldn't get splatted now! I was so close to the promised land!

I was begging to feel less like myself...my head began to cloud. Where was I? What did I even come here for? Who was I even. My heart and breathing began to slow. I could barely think. Was my skin green? I feel...sleepy…

The blending stopped.

By that point it was over. Subject 10,007 had been cleansed. Out of the blender climbed out a new sanitized octoling.

"Number 10,007," said the phone, "Thank you for your time."

 **Okay, I know it's been a while but I've been busy. I added this bonus chapter that I seriously was debating not to because it may not make sense. This is a bit of teaser for events WAY down the road but it will make sense later, but a lot later. However, it does pertain to this chapter...**

 **See if you can figure it out and send me your theories. Stay fresh!**

 **Fight for all Fiction**


	36. Chapter 36

**Christine P.O.V:**

Last night I had a dream.

I was at a massive party with a bunch of inklings at Jessie's apartment. A lot of them were inklings I knew like Jessie, Lavender, or even Blue. All of my favorite foods that I had discovered in Inkopolis were there. Music by Off the Hook shook the room. They were playing live, just for me. I remember being ridiculously happy.

But then things changed.

The apartment began to shake and Off the Hook stopped singing. Then all the inklings began to run out as the ceiling began to crack. I begged them not to leave but no one listened. Eventually I was the only one left as the apartment began to shake even more violently. The dents in the ceiling that started out as cracks now were gaping holes as rubble collapsed all around me. I was just able to utter a scream before the entire apartment went crashing down and everything went black.

Surprisingly, when my vision returned, I was in one of the caverns of Octo Canyon. I swear I had a splitting headache even though this was a dream. Through my blurred vision, I looked over myself. For some reason I was perfectly fine despite just being buried under an entire apartment worth or rubble. Dream logic I guess.

"So you're up." said a familiar voice.

I spun around and saw an elite octoling who was sitting casually on a rock that I swear wasn't there a few seconds ago.

The octoling had a outrageously generous amount of kelp applied to her hair. Then as if a lightbulb went off in my head she was instantly recognizable.

It was Kelp.

Oh my cod, it's kelp!

Without even thinking I ran across the cavern to embrace my long lost friend in a hug but before I could get to her she got up and shoved me violently to the ground.

"Don't you touch me!" my old friend screeched.

I looked up at the older octoling towering over me in bewilderment.

"Kelp, it's me, Christine!" I yelled with my hands out in a gesture of peace.

"I know it's you!" yelled Coral as she picked me up by the tentacle in pinned me to a nearby wall.

" _This is a dream…"_ I told myself as Kelp tightened her grip, " _None of this is real."_

"Kelp," I said as I struggled against her grasp to no avail, "What's wrong with you?"

"You!" yelled Kelp, "You're the thing that's wrong!"

With all my might I managed to shove Kelp off me. She reeled back and stumbled a few feet away before regaining her balance.

"Me?" I said, "What did I do?"

"You know very well what you did!" yelled Kelp, "You forgot about me! You forgot about all of us! All while enjoying yourself in Inkopolis!"

My heart broke when I heard her say that. I did...I did try to forget. I wanted to move on and put my past behind me! I was selfish! I was pathetic! I was_!

I stopped and listened to reason. I did try to forget everything but...what could I have done? I didn't have the help of the squidbeak splatoon back then either. This dream was probably just a manifestation of my fears.

"None of this is real." I said calmly as I stepped towards Kelp confidently, "This is just a dream."

I noticed Kelp stopped trying to tackle me. She stopped moving an I noticed the kelp that was matted on her head began to shake. I saw that she was crying.

"Y-You think just because I'm here in your dreams doesn't mean I'm not real?" she sniffed.

This was too much for my heart to bear. I couldn't take it anymore.

"Stop playing games!" I screamed, "You're not real! I'm going to save the _**real**_ Kelp in a few days!"

"Christine," cried Kelp, "It's too late. I'm dead."

"You're what?" I said dumbfounded.

"I said…" wailed Kelp as the cavern began to shake and suddenly weird green ink poured from the ceiling, "I'm _**dead!**_ I already died!"

"No that's not true." I told myself as I tried to move away from the cavern that was rapidly pouring green ink from its ceilings, "This is just a dream."

"Christine," sobbed Kelp, "I can't die yet I'm dead! Why do YOU get to live?!"

This was nonsense. It's all nonsense. This isn't real!

My feet began to sting as the corrosive green ink began to cover the floor.

"I'm going to save you!" I screamed defiantly at Kelp, "I'm going to save you all!"

The cavern began to fill up even more quickly after I shouted that. Coral rant at me and before I could ready myself for an onslaught she gripped my hands tightly.

"Christine," she whispered seriously as the ink began to get dangerously high, "Promise me you'll save everyone else."

I was inches away from Kelp. She looked exactly how I remembered her. For a second, I felt I was actually talking to her but I pushed it aside.

"I want to wake up…" I protested trying to push away from Kelp but she held firmly to my hands, "This all fake! Let me go!"

But Kelp gripped even tighter. "Listen," she commanded, "I don't care if you think I'm real or not, just promise me you'll save everyone!"

Kelp immediately began to weep and to my shock her tears were turning green, just like the ink.

"Please…" she pleaded.

The green ink was beginning to reach my knees. There wasn't much time left. Even though this was all fake, I couldn't even leave this dream Kelp like this.

"I…" I responded hesitantly, "I promise you I will."

As soon as I said that the cavern ceiling immediately began to collapse as rubble and ink began to surround us. Kelp noticed and gently let go of my hands.

"I'm going to save you I'm going to save all of you!" I cried as tears streamed down my cheeks.

Kelp just gave me a sad smile as the last of the cavern began to cave.

"I'm sorry Christine," she said, "But it's too late for me."

I woke up in cold sweat and was breathing heavily. I looked around. I was in Jessie's borrowed pajamas. I was on the couch in the apartment. There was no party. There was no Kelp. I was safe.

I sighed. That dream was one of the most vivid I ever had. It was so jarring to be taken out of it like that. It was like an invisible hand grabbed me out of an ink puddle and plopped me in another one of a different color. I immediately felt longing. Talking to Kelp...it just felt so real! Seeing her again, real or not, made me miss her.

However, I could not feel a sense of dread. My dream Kelp said she was dead...was that the same for the real Kelp? Would it be my fault if she was? No. No, it wouldn't be. There was nothing I could do. My mind was just going over my worst fears. She was probably doing fine. I guess I was just nervous. I mean I was going to take up a crucial mission that could save my race afterall. Not to mention it was with my worst enemy so I guess I had a right to be.

My thoughts were interrupted as the door to the living room opened, "Yo, Christine what the heck are you doing?" said Jessie groggily with a hint of annoyance, "I heard screaming, are you all right?"

"Sort of," I said not mentioning my worries with the mission, "I had a bad dream."

"Do you want to come sleep in my room?" offered Jessie a bit more softly.

"Sure." I responded. I really should tell Jessie about the mission. I'll do it tomorrow. I was debating not to so she wouldn't be worried but then I remembered how scared she must have felt when I charged down the manhole cover to go after Shelly. It wouldn't be fair to do that to her again, especially considering she's been so kind to me.

As I climbed in with Jessie to bed and began to be lulled to sleep by her loud but strangely soothing snoring, I thought about how lucky I am. I'm in Inkopolis, I have friends, I'm friends with celebrities, and have a girlfriend.

I can't really ask for anything better than that.

 **Really sorry this took so long! My week's been hectic! I hope you enjoyed it! Thank you for your continued support! It means a lot! Stay fresh!**

 **Fight for all Fiction**


	37. Chapter 37

**Christine P.O.V:**

 **2 days before the mission:**

"You what?!" screamed Jessie as I told her what I was going to do with the Squidbeak Splatoon.

"I'm going to save the octarians with Agent 4." I repeated.

Jessie plumped on what had basically had become my couch in the living room and tugged her tentacles in frustration.

"Christine," said Jessie as she clenched her head like she was having a headache, "Let me get this straight, you're going to work with that jerk Shelly!?"

"Yes." I said simply.

"But she nearly splatted you!" protested Jessie.

"Yes she did but Marie promised she would keep me safe." I countered.

"I hate to say this about the Squid Sisters but I'm not sure I can really trust them anymore," said Jessie, "I mean don't you remember what Marie did to you?"

I winced at the memory of nearly being sent back. The fear. The sense of loss.

I never wanted to be in that kind of situation again.

"Yes, but I think she truly regrets that." I replied, "I think she's been trying to make amends."

Jessie sighed, "Christine, are you really going to do this?"

"I'm sorry Jessie but I've made up my mind," I stated, "I couldn't stay up here knowing there are so many octolings still suffering at the hands of Octavio."

Jessie nodded her head in understanding as she got up off the couch. She then took a deep breath, the one that you do when your about to say something important, and leaned against the wall.

"Christine, listen, this is kinda gonna sound a bit cheesy but I feel that I should probably say this if you are truly dead set on doing this." she said seriously.

"What's that?" I said.

"The first time I saw you, y'know when we first met," said Jessie as she twirled her tentacle awkwardly she couldn't find the right words in her head to convey what she was trying to say.

"E-Everything that happened since then has been has been pretty...awesome I guess. Even when we were in that feud with Shelly there were still a lot of good things that have happened since then."

Jessie looked much more emotional than she usually was. It was really weird to see her just be so direct like this. I continued to listen.

"What I'm trying to say is...is that you've kinda changed my life and since you're my bestie…" said Jessie as she then looked up at me with a grin, "It would really suck if you got splatted so don't okay?"

"I don't intend to get splatted anytime soon." I smiled, "Beside's who's gonna be your fourth team member?"

"C'mere." said Jessie as she gave me a hug.

"Thank you Jessie," I said, "For everything."

"Are you kidding?" said Jessie, "It was a_!"

 _Knock! Knock! Knock!_

Jessie and I practically feel on the floor in surprise at the strange noise.

 _Knock! Knock! Knock!_

It was coming from the doorway. This was really strange if not slightly suspicious because in all my time at Jessie's we never got visitors.

"Who is that?" I turned to Jessie wandering if she ordered a new weapon or something.

"I'm not that Super-What's-His-Chops or whatever that character is in those human comics that can see through walls." said Jessie, "How would I know?

"Whatever," I said, "I'll get it."

"Who is it?" I asked through the doorway.

"Hello, Christine is that you?" said a familiar voice.

It was Blue!

I looked through the peephole and sure enough, standing in front of our door was a short and ironically pink inkling.

I immediately opened the door.

"Blue!" I said happily, "What are you doing here?"

"Hi Christine!" said Blue coming in, "I'm sorry if I'm barging in but I was going to do some friendly Turf War with my friends and I thought you would like to come!"

I looked at Blue in disbelief. I had never been invited to play turf outside of Jessie's team, let alone casually. To think that an inkling would let me be on their team willingly let alone seek me out was amazing.

"I would love to!" I replied.

Jessie meanwhile looked at the two of us dumbstruck, she first turned to me then the random inkling in her house.

"Sorry," said Jessie with a small hint of hostility, "First, who are you? Second, how the heck did you find my house?"

"Oh, I'm sorry," said the diminutive inkling as she extended her hand to Jessie, "My name's Blue, I met Christine back in Salmon Run."

"Blue…" murmured Jessie as she tasted the name for some familiarity. "Oh wait!" said Jessie as it finally clicked, "Christine told me about you! Now this makes sense! I'm Jessie!"

"I'm sorry I couldn't give you a heads up that I was coming but I never got Christine's number," said Blue, "I had to ask around for your address but luckily Lavender was able to tell me."

"Wait Lavender?" asked Jessie suspiciously.

"Yeah," said Blue a little apprehensive as if she did something wrong, "The inkling who works for Sheldon. What about him?"

"Nothing," siad Jessie dismissing it, "Just surprised he gave my address to a stranger, no offense."

"None taken!" beamed Blue.

I could tell Jessie was a tad bit suspicious of Blue considering that I told her what happened last time but Blue was my friend now. I was thrilled to see she was actually following up with me.

"Let me just get my stuff." I said as I donned my mesh cap from Flow and grabbed my personal Octobrush. Oh thank Cod, I don't have too barrow Jessie's weapons anymore. I kept worrying that I was going to break them or something but after Lavender gave me this thing for free, I could finally have a weapon to call my own. Besides, while inkling weaponry is nice, I still can't seem to distance myself from the old octarian weapons.

I gave Jessie a hasty goodbye and went with Blue. As I paraded out of the apartment with Blue, I could tell this was going to be a great afternoon. I mean sure I would be going into potentially mortal danger in two days time but we all deserve to treat ourselves from time to time don't we?

We were just about to go out of the house when Blue stopped me. "I'm sorry, I forgot to tell you I have some friends who are coming with us!"

I froze. Friends? Meeting a bunch of random inklings particularly only a few days after that big match with Shelly did not seem like a good idea. However, Blue just seemed so happy and considering that she was going out of her way to do me a favor, I kept quiet and just smiled.

"That sounds...great!" I said trying to hind my apprehension as we continued.

When we got out of our apartment, we went down the streets to Crusty Seans. It was about mid-afternoon and the weather was perfect. I think this is what the inklings have referred to as...summer? I noticed a steady increase in temperature lately. It's so interesting of how the surface changes in temperature and weather throughout the year. It must be nice to get some variation. I mean, underground it's always the same. It becomes almost maddening seeing the same old rocks, same old lighting, and no breeze and no wind.

We went over to Crusty Seans, it was pretty crowded considering it was midday and I was immediately greeted to repeated glances from all the inklings there. This was the first time I really went out in Inkopolis when it was crowded since the match with Shelly. There was no doubt in my mind that that was all the inklings were talking about. I caught a few dirty looks but I didn't get an intensely hostile reception. Most of the inklings just seemed to be gossiping but no one yelled or stared me down. I'm not sure if that was a good or bad thing…

"Hey Blue!" yelled an orange girl with headphones who was wearing a white shirt. She looked...familiar?

When I saw the girl I immediately froze. I remembered the orange headphone girl as one of the inklings in the crowd! I waited for it. The inevitable hatred. She would probably be disgusted and stomp off. Maybe she would start screaming at me. Why was Blue so naive? I didn't need this for today. I have had my share of hostile inklings.

"Hey Sarah!" said Blue as she high fived the girl, "This is Christine. I thought she would enjoy doing a couple of casual rounds with us."

The girl turned to face me with a smile.

"Nice to meet you!" said Sarah as she extended her hand in greeting.

I looked at the inkling as if she were crazy. Where was the hostility? Where was the icy stare? I quickly eyed the inkling over, suspecting some sort of trick but everything from her posture to her eyes suggested she was perfectly happy and relaxed.

I quickly seized her hand as not to look suspicious or unnatural and shook it.

"It's nice meet you to!" I said in the kindest tone possible. This situation seemed too perfect. It seemed so perfect that if I did one thing wrong, one mistake, and it would instantly shatter.

The inkling smiled. I couldn't believe it. Here I was, meeting a random inkling, just totally normal. I may have just been another inkling to her because she gave me no hint of finding me unusual.

Maybe...maybe Blue did it! Maybe Blue convinced some of the inklings in Inkopolis that they have nothing to fear from me? Maybe this inkling was just a close friend of Blue's and Blue was able to convince her but this was a big step! Perhaps...the tides are changing? Maybe people are actually starting to see me in a new light.

"Hey Blue," said Sarah, "Where's Finnigan?"

I reasoned Finnigan must be the fourth person for our squad.

"Don't know," replied Blue as she shrugged her shoulders, "Maybe he's_?"

"OH MAN! IT'S AN ACTUAL OCTOLING!" said the loudest voice I had ever heard in my life. I'm pretty sure people all the way at the turf lobby heard that. All the inklings who were eating turned to the voices direction and then to me.

I looked to see the source of the voice and saw a dark blue inkling from across the plaza jogging toward me.

"Hey Blue!" said what was an actually blue inkling which I could only presume was Finnigan. I tried to ignore the stares of all the inklings around us.

"Hey Finnigan!" said Blue, "This is Christine! Christine Finnigan!"

"Hello!" said the inkling as he shook my hand vigorously, "Are you really an octoling?"

I didn't know what to make of this inkling. He wasn't mean...just really...outgoing?

The inkling then gently grabbed my tentacle with his hand and handled it gently it as if it were something to be dissected or examined. I blushed furiously as I moved away from him. That was a line. I'm not some kind of science experiment and I certainly don't need strangers touching my tentacles! This inkling was lucky I didn't give him a good whack upside the head for that. The only thing stopping me was the thought that I may be actually getting somewhere with these inklings. I'm not sure how inkling culture views grabbing someones tentacles but I'm going to go on a whim and say it's probably not normal judging by Blue and Sarah's dumbfounded expressions.

In octarian society, grabbing someones tentacle was not only a violation of privacy but it was also considered seriously disrespectful if you did it to an octoling, or more specifically an elite. Elite octolings take serious pride in their tentacles, particularly the kelp that they adorn them with. It's a sort of status symbol really. I mean, it's the only thing that really distinguishes them from normal octolings so grabbing an elite octolings tentacle is severely insulting. I remember as a young octopus, I playfully grabbed an elite octoling's tentacle and I was beaten until I saw stars.

I immediately moved far away enough from Finnigan so he would let go, which he did.

"Uh excuse me," I said as politely as I could muster, "Can you...can you not do that?"

"I'm sorry," said the inkling confused, "Did I do something wrong?"

"Of course you did you idiot!" yelled Sarah as she slapped Finnigan, "That's rude!"

"O-oh sorry." said Finnigan as he turned to me. "I didn't mean to be disrespectful."

"Of course that was disrespectful!" yelled Sarah, "You don't just grab a person's tentacles!"

I looked at the inkling who just reeling from the blow from Sarah. He...he didn't seem like a bad guy or anything. He just seemed...confused or not sure how to express himself. He probably just never saw an octoling before, so as advertently rude as grabbing my tentacle was I decided to forgive him.

"It's all right," I said, "You didn't know."

Finnigan immediately lit up at that.

"Well that's cool!" he said, "Let's go turf now! Come on guys!"

The inkling immediately ran off with an angry Sarah trailing behind him.

"Sorry, about that," said Blue as she watched them run off, "Blue was pretty excited when he heard you were an octoling. He probably didn't know how to introduce himself."

"Well it's better than a lot of introductions I've experienced." I replied.

"Well that's just go have some fun and play some turf!" said Blue cheerfully as she tried to brush it aside.

And with that we ran to the turf lobby.

As we traveled over there, I wondered, do more inklings trust me as much as Sarah and Finnigan? I can hardly believe I just saw two random strangers who were totally okay with my race. Does this mean things are changing...for the better?

 **Well it's been awhile since the last update and I apologize. It looks like things are changing for Christine! Thank you for the continued support! Potentially for the better! Keep writing, keep reviewing, and Stay Fresh!**

 **Fight for all Fiction**

 **-Octoreader**


	38. Chapter 38

**Hey everyone. I am going to apologize for like the millionth time about a lack of consistent updates. The school year for me is coming to a close and it's crunch time for a lot of my classes so it's a bit hard to find time to write. Anyways, really hope you all are enjoying the story and we're probably gonna get to some serious plot points soon on we get this whole mission with Agent 3 underway. Enjoy!**

 **Shelly (a.k.a Agent 4) P.O.V:**

I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

"Hey Shelly!" said Callie, "Christine's our newest agent!"

I had just come into the cabin to hang out with the Squid Sisters when Callie just dropped the news on me like a sledgehammer as soon as I walked in the door.

I looked at Callie who was still smiling happily at me while being completely oblivious to my shocked expression.

"Are you serious?" I asked in disbelief.

"Yeah she is." said Marie as she appeared besides Callie, "Christine is going to be helping you save the octarians."

My cod, all I wanted was peaceful relaxing afternoon with my friends. Now because of that octoling deception, it was quickly escalating into an argument.

"That's insane!" I protested, "I refuse to work with that...with that...with that octoling!"

Marie raised an eyebrow in a silent warning for me to keep my cool, "We understand you have a hatred for Christine but you will just have to learn to trust her."

I was practically fuming but I knew that I was not going to get anywhere in convincing Marie if I were losing my temper.

"I'm sorry Marie," I said calmly as I adjusted my glasses, "I just can't support this. You'll need to find a different agent to work with her."

"Sorry," said Marie, "You really don't have a say in this to put it harsly. Agent 3 is with Cuttlefish anyway."

"What about the failed lab experiment you decided to trust?" I commented snidely, "Why don't you let the octoling associate with her own kind."

I realized immediately that I had gone to far. Marie's face turned bright red at my comment and before I knew what was happening she struck me in the face with the back of her hand.

"Don't...you... _ **dare**_...say that about Eight," she growled, "You and every other inkling above that grate is alive because of her!"

I looked at Marie's expression. I had been friends with her for a long time. She had gotten angry before but she had never once hit me. I had struck a nerve with her and suddenly felt very small before this incredibly angry girl.

"Listen," I said trying to be less provocative but still not giving ground, "I won't deny that that octoling saved Inkopolis but it really isn't our role to give up our land that we _**won**_ to a bunch of traitors who lost to us in the Turf War."

"That was so long ago!" yelled Marie, "You just don't get it! The octolings of today have changed and so have we! You have no right to say Eight or Christine doesn't belong here!"

I began to get angry myself. I knew I was poking a dragon. I knew our friendship has been stressed to begin with since that octoling came but...I couldn't believe that they would actually do this to me. This was above the line. I'm not working with that octoling. I refuse.

I exploded in anger, "You want to have a bunch of thieves into Inkopolis who recently just stole our power supply?! If it were up to me we should have just wiped them all out at the end of the Turf War! All they do is just steal from us, cause us problems, and…" my voice was shaking as I struggled to finish my sentence as painful memories sprung to mind, "...kill us!"

Marie stayed silent and glared while Callie just looked away, she was obviously uncomfortable. I think Marie was backing down. Maybe she was actually listening! Good, maybe then she would abandon this insane plan and apologize. It was hard to tell though she still looked furious. I however was not letting down for a second.

"Look at the Squidbeak Splatoon!" I continued, "It used to be just me, you, Callie, and Agent 3. Now all of the sudden you've let two octolings, the very menace were trying to fight join our ranks! How can you possibly justify that and tell me that I'm the one not listening!"

Marie remained silent and just glared. Maybe I was getting to her.

"Well?" I inquired demanding an answer.

Marie simply cleared her throat. Her voice came out strained as if she was struggling to not scream at me. Her usual composure was kicking back in, "I should also note that unless I give you an explicit order to do so, you will not be splatting any octarians on this mission." she said calmly as if our explosive exchange a few seconds ago never happened. At this point I was puzzled. Why would we go on a mission to Octo Canyon if we weren't splatting octarians?

"Wait we're not splatting any octarians?" I asked with a sort of sinking feeling that I didn't want to hear the answer. I had stopped yelling.

"That is correct," replied Marie, "We're going to put a giant Killer Wail on Octavio's UFO and we'll play Calamari Inktation so we can free all of the octolings."

I didn't like this at all. Not one bit.

"What...what happens to the octolings then?" I asked nervously.

"What do you think?" said Marie without a hint of pity, "They go into Inkopolis and we welcome them with open arms."

This...this went against everything I stood for. I had worked hard, so hard, to stop just one freeloading octoling from infiltrating inkopolis but all of the octolings in Octo Canyon? That would mean Inkopolis would become full of enemies. Knowing how most of them think they would probably just stap us in the back and take over Inkpopolis. Not only that but it would be caused by the people who swore to protect Inkopolis from harm! That would be the end for me. Everything I had worked so hard for would be gone.

"This is stupid on all levels!" I yelled, "You're telling me we're just going to _**let**_ all the octolings in after what they did to us! Your insane!"

"Shelly," said Marie softly, addressing me informally, "I know that you hate octolings but you're not giving them a chance. You need to trust me on this one."

"Trust?" I yelled, "Trust you to bring Inkopolis to its doom?! Trust you to let that filthy unfresh octoling work with me?!"

"Shelly," said Marie calmly, "I know your upset but I will have to fire you if you can't do this. This is completely necessary to protect Inkopolis. Octavio will be powerless without his soldiers. Think of it as beating Octavio once and for all."

I didn't know what to do. I can't lose this job. What will I do without it but the thought of seeing octolings all over Inkopolis made me want to vomit. To be completely honest, I was furious. I wanted to go up to the surface and splat that octoling like I should have done long ago. Then again, I had to think clearly and what would be for the greater good. In my line of work, being blind to your enemies in your rage is a fatal mistake.

I weighed my options. What is my goal? That's easy, to keep my job and let no octoling set foot in Inkopolis. I could only really do one or the other, not both. However, if I quit right now, I could seriously jeopardize Marie's suicidal plan and force her to think straight. But...what if she was lying about needing me? What if she could really find another agent like Agent 8 or Agent 3 to the job. Maybe this was all some master plan to get me to "befriend" the octoling. If that were true then the mission would most likely succeed and I would be jobless as octolings flooded Inkopolis' streets.

If I were to go through with it. I would be able to keep an eye on the octoling and make sure she doesn't do anything fishy. If I really needed to...I could even sabotage Marie's insane plans as a last resort if things get seriously dire. Even if Marie did succeed and Inkopolis falls to backstabbing octolings, I would be in a better position to fight back if I were an agent rather than a civilian.

Curse you octoling! You've tricked my two best friends! I've done everything to get rid of you! I've warned you. I've threatened you. I've rallied other inklings against you. I've nearly splatted you. I've even publicly humiliated you in turf war.

So why is it that you can't leave my friends and I alone? Why do you persist even after all I've done? It seems hopeless sometimes. Even now, many of the inklings I've rallied are either convinced that the octoling is nice or have told me they need to learn more first. It seems no matter what I do I can't get rid of you!

Meanwhile Callie and Marie both waited for my response.

I breathed in a deep sigh before uttering the one bittersweet word that Marie wanted to here,

"Yes."

 **Okay, I really like these Shelly chapters. I like writing from her perspective I guess. We're at what? Chapter 38? I never thought this fic would ever get this far. Thank you all for your continued support! Stay fresh!**

 **Fight for All Fiction.**

 **-Octoreader**


	39. Chapter 39

**Christine's P.O.V:**

After catching up with Finnigan and Sarah, we arrived in the turf war lobby. I was so exhausted trying to catch up to them I was leaning up on my octobrush like a walker. However, looking behind me as poor Blue lugged her heavy dynamo roller into the lobby I didn't feel so tired anymore.

"You guys look exhausted." commented Finnigan who was wielding his dualies which would explain why he could run so fast without getting tired.

"No...crap…" panted Blue as we entered the weirdly lit lobby, "We're...not all...maining dualies y'know."

"Well that's why I like them," said Finnigan twirling a dually on his finger, "Easy to run with."

"Personally I prefer any kind of brush." I said as I chimed in motioning to my brush.

"Oh really?" said Finnigan beaming as if the fact that I liked brushes was some sort of fascinating fact, "What kind of brushes do they have in Octo Canyon?"

I looked at the inkling's enthusiastic expression. He was sort of creeping me out but at least he wasn't mean or anything. Well, I'll take an overly enthusiastic inkling over a hateful one anyday.

"Well, you see…" I began as I was about to explain that the inkling's actually already have octoling weaponry when I heard a voice.

"Oh my cod we're facing _**her**_?" said a surprised voice.

I saw another splatoon had entered the lobby and a purple inkling stared at me in surprised expression. She was wearing a casual white shirt with some pants and was carrying some sort of duffle bag which I could only presume was her weapon. The inkling was flanked by her squadmates, who all had purple tentacles to match her color. The inkling's face morphed into one of intense disappointment. I could tell she was staring at me.

"I didn't think they allowed you to play turf war." said the inkling standing up straighter and trying to be intimidating as she started to walk toward me.

Oh no. Why now? Why now? Why did the one time I was actually able to hang out with a group of inklings did I have to have some jerk rain on it? For the first time since getting here, I felt anger. I mean that wasn't really true, Shelly definitely made me angry before but this time it threatened to actually spill out. It was all I could do to keep a neutral expression. Looking back I'm pretty sure I was shaking.

"Well," I said in a last ditch attempt to be reasonable, "Judd said I can so I am."

"Listen," I added, "To be completely direct with you, I've had to deal with so many inklings like you who always think I'm some sort of monster but I'm not. I'm a bit sick of it so if you don't want to battle me you can just leave."

The inkling's squad whispered at my comments but their leader wasn't having it, "Sorry," she said sarcastically obviously not listening at all, "But I would love to give you another whooping if you didn't learn the first time."

I immediately realized that she was referring to Shelly's victory and I felt instant embarrassment. That match really was a hot mess. It was painful just thinking about.

To be completely honest, I wanted to give this inkling a whopping of her own but I resisted it. I was amazed of how restrained I was.

"Hey listen lady!" said Blue angrily as she went in front of me to confront the inkling. However, she didn't seem all that scary to the other girl I don't think. There was about a foot and a half difference in height. Blue didn't even reach the girl's shoulder.

"I don't care if you hate this girl or not," yelled Blue as she jabbed a finger toward the other inkling, "but this octoling saved my life so I can't let you just insult her like that."

I realized things were getting pretty heated and I was really worried we were going to have some sort of brawl in the lobby. Despite the fact, I would love any excuse to kick this girl's face in for basically ruining my experience with Blue, I really didn't need to get banned from turf war nor damage my already fragile relationship with the inklings.

"Hey," I joked as I went up to the girl with my mouth open, "She's right, I don't bite, well, I mean we all have fangs but I really don't."

I thought maybe some humor would diffuse the situation but it backfired spectacularly. The inkling didn't like me getting that close to her and grabbed me by the shirt. It was sudden and fast. I didn't have any time to react and the girl was surprisingly strong.

"You get any closer to me I'm gonna…" began the girl but she was cut off as Sarah grabbed her from behind seperating her apart from me while Finnigan did the same to me.

"Are you insane?!" yelled Sarah, "You want us to get kicked out of the league?!"

"Why are you even defending her?" yelled the inkling as she kicked her legs uselessly like a toddler, "She's an octoling, an enemy."

"She's not an enemy you jerk," said Sarah as she pushed the inkling toward her teammates who were stunned at the sudden outburst by their leader, "She just wants to play turf so lay off!"

I looked at Sarah. She was a complete stranger. Yet she was just standing up for a random octoling that her friend introduced her to. She could have just walked away, it wasn't her problem. I don't know why it felt so heartwarming. Maybe I just was so used to inklings being hostile outside of those I knew. Was that the sad reality? That I was so used to be being verbally attacked that I didn't know what it felt like for a stranger to stand up for me. What's going to happen if I get all the octolings in Octo Canyon up here? Will the inklings ever accept me or any other octarians?

Still, I shouldn't be so negative. A stranger actually helping me at her own expense was not a bad thing. No, it was a sign things were improving. Despite the seriousness of the situation, I couldn't hep but give a small content smile.

"You know what?" chimed in Blue, "This person isn't worth the grief. Let's just go."

"Y-Yeah!" added Finnigan trying to be intimidating, "Let's go."

I was about to agree but then I realized something. Why should I let this girl chase me off like this? Sure, I'm not going to do any favors by insulting or attacking her...

But I can destroy her in turf.

"Actually," I said, "Let's stay."

"Wait what?" interjected Blue. "Why?"

"Listen," I said ignoring Blue and facing the purple tentacled girl, "I'm not sure how else to explain that I'm not here to destroy Inkopolis but if you want to have a match against me that's fine."

The inkling hesitated at how direct I was but then took out a large looking roller out of her duffle bag all the suddenly shoved it near my face. Fortunately, it didn't have any ink on it but the act was still as threatening.

"Listen you octoling," she said smugly, "This here is a roller. It splats octolings. Get used to seeing it."

This inkling annoyed me. Everything from the smug grin on her face to the way she nearly hit me with the end of a roller. It perplexed me. Was this inkling like this to everyone? Shelly seemed really nice when she was talking to Callie and Marie but as soon as I was there she turned into a completely different person. It upset me. Could inklings really be this cruel? Here I am telling her directly that I'm just a fellow cephalopod who wants to play turf but she still persists. It seems hopeless almost. It makes me wonder if a person liek Shelly can even begin to listen…

"Hey," said Sarah as she went into her own duffle bag and pulled out a particularly nasty looking charger, "This is a charger. It splats annoying little inklings looking for trouble. Get used to seeing it."

I snickered. I couldn't help it. Sarah's jokes rivaled Jessie's. Plus, the reaction on the purple inkling's face was priceless. Her ears were red and her eyes and mouth were wide as if she just saw a kraken.

She at first opened her mouth to say something but she couldn't find the words. All she could manage was yelling, "I'm going to cream you you stupid octoling!" as her team teleported away to their spawn site leaving us alone

I looked at my own teammates who were all ready to go. My eyes then turned to Sarah who was triumphantly holding her charger.

"That should teach her." she commented, "Who does she think she is?"

She then turned to me, "Are you okay?" she asked.

"I'm fine," I responded.

"Are you sure?" pried Sarah, "That inkling was being pretty mean."

"Used to it," I replied trying to blow it off.

"That's...that's awful!" responded Sarah.

I again couldn't help but feeling a little suspicious yet I saw nothing but genuine pity in her eyes. What made this Sarah person change? She chased me through Inkapolis yet she only seemed to realize what I had to deal with almost everyday until now. What did Blue say to her that made this kind off change? Perhaps some inklings actually can listen. Maybe not all of them are like Shelly or that girl. The question is, which inklings made up the majority? Inklings like Blue and Sarah or inklings like Shelly or that purple girl.

I looked around me and noticed that everyone was staring at me concerned and waiting for a response.

"No seriously guys," I smiled with a toothed grin, "It's just one inkling, let's not let it ruin our day."

Yet I knew this wasn't necessarily true. After all, I did just challenge this inkling to a match. It was personal I guess. I still remembered the embarrassment of losing to Shelly and I couldn't just back down to that inkling. I needed to show all the inklings I could stand up for myself. Losing was not an option this time.

"Well," I said clutching my octobrush, "Shall we do this?"

 **Hey guys, summer is almost upon me so I probably will give more consistent updates.**

 **Now just a little announcement, I HAVE thought about starting another Splatoon fic but I will NOT stop making this one for the forseeable future. I've came too long to quit this fic and I hate writers who just abandon there stories. So don't worry I will not stop writing this fic. Your support has really helped keep me going.**

 **My hypothetical fic is a fic loosely based on on TamarinFrog's comic Cafe Calamari. That said, you wouldn't need to read it to understand my story as it is only going to focus on one of the characters that really isn't seen much in it (that said Cafe Cadamari is literally the best Splatoon fancomic on the internet so if you're reading this you probably would like it) I consider making my stories accessible a high priority**

 **Either way, this is all hypothetical and is just a reminder that if my updates start taking long it means I may be working on another fic but don't worry, I'm not going to abandon this story. I will let you know when or if I will start writing my story "Kirisikka"**

 **Thank you for all the support for this comic. I appreciate it! As usual write, review, and Stay Fresh.**

 **Fight for All Fiction**

 **-Octoreader**


	40. Chapter 40

**Christine's P.O.V (two days before the mission):**

My team and I spawned in at the beginning of the match as the blue team. The map looked like a large shipyard with a large amount of high and low points.

"Okay everyone!" shouted Blue, "I'll turf with Finnigan and Sarah you'll turf with Christine!"

So Sarah and I advanced toward the enemy's position while I slopped ink everywhere and Sarah covered my position.

"This is a pretty big ship that's under construction," I remarked.

"Yeah," said Sarah still peering in the scope of her charger so nobody got the jump on us, "I think the jellyfish use it for fishing or something. To dangerous for inklings like us to work on them without a spawn pad."

"Yeah well…" I began but was interrupted by Sarah.

"Hold on," said Sarah suddenly shifting her charger toward something and discharged the weapon at something in the distance. I heard a faint scream of surprise and saw an explosion of blue ink.

I squinted and reasoned that the target she hit must have been at least more than a hundred yards away. My jaw practically hit the floor. I didn't think anyone could ever humanly aim that far. Even the best octolings I saw that specialized with the octo longshot never were able to aim that far. Sarah was really skilled.

"Sorry," said Sarah casually as she resumed conversation like it was nothing, "It was that annoying little jerk with the roller."

"How do you shoot that far?!" I blurted out still staring at the impossible distance.

"I'm just X ranked," said Sarah with a faint hint of ego, "It was no big deal."

"That girl's going to be mad." I commented a bit worried.

"Let her be," replied Sarah making a gesture with her charger, "She isn't coming near you with a roller if I'm using this."

Sarah was right. Approaching a charger with a roller is suicide, unless you have the element of surprise of course. It was comforting to know Sarah would have my back while I could safely turf more territory.

After turfing for a while I could see that the borders of color were beginning to meet and I could see two of the purple inkling's teammates intensely turfing area. This would be the spot where we would see who had the advantage.

I was bracing for a big fight but all Sarah did was discharge two blasts from her charger at another seemingly inhuman distance, splatting both of them.

This was going to be easy once we had control of this area. As long as we could just claim this space, we would never lose because Sarah would pick off anyone who tried to foolheartedly approach.

I high fived Sarah.

"That was amazing!" I practically screamed.

"Again no problem!" she said, "Let's just claim this area."

This was going to be a smashing victory. We would have an almost irrevocable advantage with this spot and Sarah's impeccable aim.

However, I heard a loud clatter and I could see a figure charging madly at both of us as they knocked over a couple of rusty barrels that they were presumably hiding behind.

It was the purple inkling girl, holding a roller with sheer venom in her eyes.

What happened next happened very fast yet my mind processed it in slow motion.

I instinctively dived out of the way as she brought the roller down, splatting Sarah as a trail of ink splashed no more than a few inches away from me.

This was bad. We would lose our advantage. I would lose...again! I couldn't stand to me humiliated anymore! I knew I only had a few seconds before the inkling would be able to bring down her roller again. I was already on the ground in a vulnerable position. Unfortunately, getting up and reacting would be a few seconds two late.

The purple inkling smiled as I pulled myself up, knowing that I wouldn't be able to do a thing to stop her from using her roller again.

I couldn't rush her to stop her swing so I did the next best thing. I shifted into an octopus and jumped toward her as she brought the roller down. I was about ten feet in the air as I watched the huge wave of ink splat uselessly on the ground before shifting into an octoling again with my octobrush drawn.

The inkling looked up and I must say the expression on her face was priceless.

 _SPLAT!_

I hit the girl cleanly with the power of gravity aiding my strike. I felt the wave of comfortable blue ink splash into my face from her splatting and dived into into it to break my fall.

What did I just do?

I was shaking from the adrenaline. I shouldn't be capable of this. I'm just an octarian soldier, not an elite like Kelp was. I felt like I was on the top of the world.

I then saw a figure in the sky and saw Sarah super jump to my location with her charger at the ready.

"Where is she?!" she said pointing her charger angrily in all directions.

"I took care of her." I responded.

Sarah raised an eyebrow. She looked impressed.

"Really?" she exclaimed, "I barely even remember what happened!"

"Neither did I." I said breathing a sigh of relief blowing it off, "Let's just wrap this up."

And so we did. I was right as well. The rest of the battle was a breeze. We retained our position as Blue and Finnigan stormed the opponent's side and soon we had taken over a large portion of the map.

 _GAME!_

I could hardly believe it as we were teleported back to the lobby. We had won. And my teammates didn't just carry me either! If I hadn't splatted that inkling we probably would have lost.

"That was awesome!" exclaimed Blue, "I think we did pretty good."

"More than that!" said Sarah, "We absolutely destroyed them!"

I saw the other team beam back in. To be completely honest, they looked angry to say the least.

Especially that girl.

Well, I tried one last ditch attempt to be nice.

"Hey," said to the girl, "Good game."

The purple inkling simply glared and yelled, "Don't say another word to me you piece of..."

I'm not really going to repeat the word she said but it was very insulting not to mention Sarah and Blue immediately began hurling equally insulting words immediately after. Finnigan just covered his ears to muffle all of it out.

"Shelly will get you octoling!" yelled the girl as she ran off suddenly. I could tell that she appeared to be crying as she left.

"Talk about salty…" said Sarah.

"That's an understatement." muttered Blue.

I couldn't help but think about the inkling's last statement.

" _Shelly will get you octoling!"_

Considering that I'll be working in a life or death situation with her soon, I wouldn't be surprised. Actually, it was just starting to sink in even after the emotional conversation with Jessie that I might never come back. Something could totally go wrong. Maybe Shelly will betray me or perhaps the octarians will be alerted, have enough time to change their ink color, and splat both of us. It was not an exaggeration to say that there were infinite ways we could fail. I was beginning to feel a sick feeling in my gut about all this.

"Hey let's all get some Crusty Sean for dinner!" said Blue, "All on me!"

"Sure!" said Sarah.

Well, it's going to happen one way or another. Let me enjoy myself just this once. I deserved it.

We then all went and ate some greasy yet very good fried food before I bid everyone farewell and returned to Jessie's apartment.

Despite what I would be facing soon, I was happy.

Hopefully, Kelp and all the other octolings feel the same if I succeed.

I can only hope.

 **Okay! My school is out in a week or to so hopefully I'll be able to bang out more chapters.**

 **Also, my new fanfic, Kirsikka, is now up in the Splatoon archive. Please check it out. I intend to work on it just as much as this one so updates will be a bit lengthier but I think this new story will be worth it! As for what it's about...see for yourself! Perhaps, I'll even take new OC's!**

 **Thank you again for reading and I'm sorry for the gap between updates. Stay fresh!**

 **Fight for all Fiction**

 **-Octoreader**


	41. Chapter 41

**Day before mission…**

 **Jessie P.O.V:**

The next day was kinda awkward.

Christine and I just nervously went about our business but we all knew what was going to happen…

I really REALLY wish we could just get this whole thing over with but the date was already set.

I contacted Lavender, Kaya, and Sasha to try and arrange a time we could hang out tomorrow so I could distract myself while Christine was down doing her thing.

Sasha was busy with some other friends. Kaya and Lavender both said that they were helping Sheldon with a special order of an XL killer wail. We don't even use those things anymore and thank god because I hated them so much! Really annoying...

Who could possibly want a giant killer wail?

 **Callie and Marie's P.O.V:**

Callie and Marie had just received the order from Sheldon and were inspecting it in the security of Cuttlefish's shack.

"It's massive…" said Callie in awe while looking at the massive killer whale.

"It has to be." said Marie a she smiled in contempt, "Nobody gonna catch a hint of the music if its any smaller."

"You still sure everything's going to be alright with this whole mission." asked Callie.

"Like I said..." responded Callie as she walked over to a large pile of crates that certainly weren't there yesterday.

"It has to be."

 **Shelly (a.k.a Agent 3's) P.O.V:**

I couldn't sleep tonight.

Too much to think about.

Yawning and getting out of bed, I pulled up my phone. I was bored and had nothing else to do.

I then somehow ended up in my photos section and pulled up a picture of my mom and dad.

They had such beautiful green tentacles...such much like mine…

This is what it comes down to at its core doesn't it. Call it a hero's cliche but those octolings took away my parents.

I can't let them take anymore.

I then scrolled through my photos some more and found the photo of an excited me in my hero's suit for the first time next to the squid sisters doing their signature pose. It was my first time meeting them. I was ecstatic to be friends with such famous idols.

Good times.

Callie and Marie, no matter want happens I'm still your friend.

I hope I want have to do anything drastic but please...forgive me if I do.

 **Christine's P.O.V:**

I couldn't fall asleep.

I was just too nervous.

Plus, I had another bad dream.

I saw Kelp again it was the exact same dream. Wasn't as lucid though.

It ended the exact same way with Kelp lamenting insanely of how she'd dead but not dead and of how it was so unfair I was living the good life in Inkopolis. Then she would suddenly stop being angry and ask me to save everyone else. Then she would say it was too late for her and I would again be flooded in bright green ink.

I found the whole thing disturbing. The first dream felt like I was actually speaking to Kelp but this dream felt more like watching a movie that I had already scene. What if Kelp got splatted already? Worse yet, what if something goes wrong and I do myself.

My eyes then laid on the mesh cap that Flow gave me.

I've really come a long way haven't I?

Things could be better with Shelly and some other inklings true but I've gotten to meet a lot of nice people who have really helped me. Not to mention I've gotten to experience the surface with all its sun, wind, and rain. I also am living in a nice apartment, gotten a celebrities phone number, and have a girlfriend.

I really hope nothing goes wrong...it's been quite a ride and I really hope it doesn't have to end on such a bad note.

I mentally slapped myself across the face. These were all hypothetical. I wasn't going to get splatted, even Shelly wouldn't be stupid enough to just splat me in front of Callie and Marie…

Would she?

I went to sleep again and there were no more dreams.

 **Okay this chapter was incredibly short and is more of a prologue to the mission. This is more of just a bonus. I've been busy in the thick of finals and I'm out of school in a few days so I'll give more frequent updates hopefully. This was just kind of a way to thank people for putting up with some really long updates and drum up some intensity. I've been alternating updating Fresh Out of Octo Canyon and Kirsikka and I'm hoping people can chew on the other splatoon fic while waiting for this story. I'll probably be updating on this story more though since we're going through a big plot point.**

 **Thanks for all the support. Stay fresh!**

 **Fight for all fiction.**


	42. Chapter 42

**Christine's P.O.V:**

I woke up the next day. I contemplated lazing in bed and sleeping in more before working on breakfast for Jessie and I until I realized what day it was.

I sighed. There wasn't much to really do. No use putting it off. I grabbed my octobrush and carefully headed out without waking Jessie who was snoring peacefully. Part of me couldn't help but wonder if I would ever see her again.

I brushed the thought aside. No getting cold feet now. I owe this to all of the octarians and I promised Kelp that I would save her. I went out the door without looking back.

I moved down the streets of Inkopolis which were eerily silent. It was barely even sunrise and not a single soul was stirring. I went over to the manhole cover I jumped out of my first day. I remember being so nervous before jumping out of there. I felt the exact same way this time except it was in reverse. Instead of taking one last look at Octo Canyon, I was taking a last look at Inkopolis.

I made sure know one was looking and jumped through the manhole cover. I made a few twists and turns before ending up in Octo Valley on my rump.

"Hey Christine," yelled Callie who for some reason seemed to ignore the biological law that her race didn't like to get up early. Perhaps she drinks a gallon of coffee like Jessie. "How are you?" she asked happily.

Terrified? Nervous? Anything but good.

"Great!" I lied before cringing at how confidently I said it.

"Wonderful," said Marie who suddenly appeared behind her sister, "Come back here so I can show you something."

We went behind the shack to an old table which had a new looking suit that was bright yellow. A pair of headphones and boots accompanied it. They all looked shiny and new. They definitely stood out in sharp contrast to the old table. Was this for me?

"This is…" I said breathlessly while gawking at the technology.

"...a hero suit!" finished Callie, "Fresh off the press might I add!"

I delicately picked up the outfit as if holding it would tear it or cause it to break. It was slim and mobile. The headphones could have been completely alien technology to me. They were far ahead of octarian designs. All of the stuff was the finest money could buy.

"Well," smiled Marie, "Put it on."

"I slipped the hero suit on over my regular clothes. The headphones fit just perfectly over my ears and the suit was incredibly easy to move around in. Sure beat the clunky octarian armor and goggles.

"An octoling wearing hero gear," mused Marie, "This is really a big moment for the Squidbeak Splatoon."

"You look wonderful!" added Callie.

I heard a small thump from in front of the shack announcing the arrival of Agent 4. I couldn't help but feel a sinking sensation. The last time I was here with her she nearly splatted me. My hands instinctively clutched my octobrush tighter.

We went out front to see Shelly in her own hero suit. She was dusting herself off from the landing and I couldn't help but notice the contrast to mine. Her's was much more worn with the occasional rip and tear while mine was shiny and new.

"You gave it a hero suit?" said Shelly with obvious hostility.

"Yes," responded Marie calmly but with a faint hint of anger, "Please call her by her name Agent 4."

"Can't do that." responded Shelly.

" _Agent 4…_ " growled Marie.

"Fine, Christine," said Shelly with gritted teeth.

"Much better!" said Ma, "Now let's get started."

Marie then stood on top of the table while Shelly and I stood side by side and listened.

"Okay listen up!" said Marie, "Octavio has a U.F.O that he resides in over Octo Canyon which is the perfect place for us to set up our giant killer wail."

"Where is the killer whale?" I asked as I saw no killer whale anywhere around here, let alone a giant one.

"This is," said Marie as she went into the shack and pulled out what looked like a hefty metal backpack, "You carry this thing on the strap and put it on the surface you want to put the killer whale. After that all you need to do is push this big red button on it to transform it and push it again to activate it."

"Have you tested it?" I asked.

Marie and Callie both gave a look at each other before Marie spoke, "No we didn't. It requires too much energy to just fool around with."

"So this might not even work." I remarked. I was beginning to get skeptical.

"Yes," said Marie, "However, there's another big part of the plan. You have to go in the UFO and disable its sensors and controls so the octarian's can't just shake it off or move the UFO. Agent 4 will set up the device."

This plan was becoming increasingly risky. An untested device and leaving Shelly with said device? It sounded like the plan could go wrong in a lot of ways. I looked over to see if Shelly gave any visible indicator of how she felt about the circumstances but she showed none.

"Any questions?" said Marie gesturing to us.

Nobody asked any.

"Okay, good." she said as she took something out of her pocket before handing it to me, "Christine, you'll need this. We're hoping this will disguise you"

I practically had a heart attack when I saw she was handing me a pair of hypnoshades.

"Are you insane?!" I screamed as I backed away.

What was Marie thinking? Didn't she know what those things do?

"Relax…" said Marie, "These are fake. Well they're real but their just deactivated. Octavio strapped these on Callie."

I took a deep breath and slowly put them on. Images flashed before my head of octolings shoving glasses on me but I managed to strike up the nerve to put them on. I took a deep breath and opened my eyes. It really just was like a pair of sunglasses with my vision a bit darkened but otherwise I was fine. No music and best of all...no hypnotism. I relaxed.

I was still a bit worried. Wouldn't the octarians be a little suspicious if I was in an agent uniform? Maybe octolings only need to look at your head tentacles and face or something. I trusted that Marie would have thought of it. The inkling wasn't stupid.

"It only takes a few seconds to put on a pair of glasses octoling," said Shelly, taking a jab.

I immediately felt the urge to punch of those stupid glasses of her own off of her. How dare she? Does she have any idea what it's like to voluntarily put on hypnoshades? The same shades which caused me to be a mindless slave and hunt down my friends. It took all my self control to simply ignore her snide remark.

"Let's just get started," I said as I stared Shelly down.

"Yes," replied Shelly as she returned my glare with her usual cold stare, "Let's."

 **And that's it for this chapter people. I'm on summer now, wooo *default dance* I should be a bit more free. Thanks for the continued support. Stay fresh!**

 **Fight for all Fiction**

 **-Octoreader**


	43. Chapter 43

**Christine's P.O.V:**

Marie then took us over to a cluster of kettles.

"All right," said Marie pointing to a particular one, "Agent 4 is going to take you through here and you'll find Octavio's shuttle and install the device."

My heart felt like it was beating through my chest. This was it!

Agent 4 simply jumped through the kettle like it was no big deal. How many times had she gone through it? Part of me wondered how many octarians she would take out before coming back up. I gave one last look at Callie and Marie.

"Be careful," added Marie as she whispered in my ear, "We'll monitor Agent 4 so she doesn't cause any trouble."

"Thanks," I responded slightly reassured, "Let's just get this over with."

And with that I jumped through as well.

I found myself in some sort of odd high tech area. Everything was lit up and starry. The harsh lights were blinding...and familiar. I suddenly realized where I was. It was Cephalopod HQ, the center of Octo Valley. I rarely was ever stationed here. I couldn't help feel the smallest bit of nostalgia.

"Please be careful octoling," hissed Shelly who was already waiting besides a spot light, "I don't need you alerting every octarian in the area."

"I'm not an idiot you know." I growled.

I couldn't help but notice how easy it was to sound hostile but this wasn't the time for petty grudges.

Agent 4 guided me through Cephalopod HQ. We occasionally had to duck behind a nearby wall to avoid some patrolling octarians. Seeing octolings again was both familiar and terrifying. They all looked unnatural with their gait. Robotic even. I was so nervous I almost felt like I was in a dream rather than real life. I felt very uncomfortable even though this was supposed to be my home.

"This is awful…" I lamented.

"Quite your complaining," said Agent 4 as she snuck around, "It would have been the other way around if you won the Great Turf War and you know it."

"You still can't get over that," I replied as I slipped over a barrel, "That's ancient history."

"Just shut it okay?" hissed Shelly, "I don't need to hear your sob stories."

I stopped following Agent 4, "You don't know anything about how hard it was for me to get here." I warned, "Especially with squids like you."

Agent 4 stopped moving as well, "Really?" said Agent 4 now with a growing fury in her eyes, "My parents were murdered by _**your**_ race yet I don't go complaining about it like a baby."

"No," I responded sarcastically, "You go around making others miserable instead."

"Watch your_!" began Agent 4 before Marie interrupted both of us by practically screaming into our headphones.

"Stop it all of you!" she yelled, "Your going to get splatted if you can't concentrate on the mission so set aside the cat fights for later."

But it was too late. Agent 4 and I were so busy arguing in place that we didn't notice that an octoling had already turned around the corner. Fortunately, it hadn't seen us yet but I could see Agent 4 was already raising her hero shot.

"Easy pickings…" she muttered as her hands curled around the trigger.

"No!" I yelled. I couldn't see Shelly just murder an innocent octoling. Even if we rescued all the octolings in Octo Canyon, I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if one got splatted. Agent 4 was so focused on her prey that I was able to hit her with the flat end of my brush before she was able to place a shot.

 _Crash!_

Unfortunately, I only had just enough time to do that. Agent 4 landed behind some barrels in some bizarre twist of fait but I was clearly visible to the octoling who was attracted to the noise.

She was a bit smaller than me and had the usual red tentacles. She was holding her octoshot in standard military fashion. I swore as I realized that I was caught but surprisingly the octoling did not attack. She simply spoke.

"Comrade!" she yelled almost robotically while completely ignoring the agent uniform I had on, "What are you doing?"

I looked down at her. The shades were enough to register me as an ally. This was good but I needed to keep up the act.

"Uhhhh," I said stupidly, "I don't know."

That was literally the stupidest possible thing I could say! I could have said I tripped, the barrels just fell over, or even that I just slipped on a banana peel. Any response could have been better. I cursed at myself for being so dumb on the mission.

The octoling wasn't dumb either and she approached me sternly, "What do you mean you don't know?"

She was now speed walking toward me. Her hypnoshades glowed eerily. The situation was going out of control.

I was beginning to panic because I realized that if this octoling discovered Agent 4 behind the barrels things would almost certainly unravel. I could see the octarian getting closer and closer. I couldn't lose because of something like this...not now.

I suddenly rushed the octoling and hit her across the face with my brush like I did to Agent 4. Her shades instantly shattered. The octoling also tumbled into the barrels causing more racket. I looked around quickly and found a nearby building. I then dragged Agent 4 and the now unconscious octoling into a nearby building before anyone heard the commotion.

Marie who was silent for the entire incident was now yelling into my mic in a panic.

"What was that?! Get out of there before someone sees you!" she screeched.

"On it." I said as I shut the door to the building behind me.

I was in some sort of chemical storage room which was dimly lit by a single lonely light bulb. It didn't seem like it had been in use for a while. There were some more empty boxes, barrels, and some remain of turf war equipment. I wasn't taking any chances and bolted the door behind me. I took a large breath of relief. I was safe...for now.

The subdued octoling began to come to and I realized that I had hit her so hard I had accidentally given her a bloody nose. I guess I overdid it in my panic

The octoling looked up at me and immediately began to scream, "Who are you?!" she started yelling before frantically eyeing my hypnoshades before adding, "Get away!"

I covered the octolings mouth and looked at the door nervously. I prayed that the lock would hold if someone started to investigate the commotion.

I could feel a sharp pain and I could see the octoling gnawing on my hand with her beak.

"Calm down." I said through gritted teeth as she was biting quite hard, "Be quiet. I'm not here to hurt you."

The octoling stopped biting which was good because I realized my hand was killing me. I let it off her mouth and reminded myself to ask Jessie where she kept the band aids in the apartment. The octoling was wide looked scared and confused, just like how I was after breaking my glasses. I couldn't help but smile at the realization of my experience of the same situation. It felt like I was teaching a younger sibling something basic like how to walk or ride a bike.

"I'm sure you have a lot of questions." I whispered, "Just keep them quite so we don't get caught."

The octoling looked at me and rubbed her nose. She didn't seem to know what to say for a moment but then I became being bombarded by questions all at once.

"W-What is going on?" she asked nervously.

"I'm on a mission to rescue all the octolings. Octavio hypnotized us all." I responded calmly.

"N-No way…" said the octoling in disbelief, "F-For eel?"

I realized I was basically just dropping inkstrike after inkstrike of heavy handed information that was basically turning this octoling's world upside down. I mean, I was basically telling her that all her friends were hypnotized, that her leader betrayed her, and that we were about to save everyone or get splatted trying.

"Yeah unfortunately," I grimaced trying to keep it simple.

"I remember…" said the octoling as she scrunched her forehead, "It was the shades wasn't it? The fresh ones he gave us"

"Yep." I said.

Even now, I was still trying to get over the fact that Octavio actually crossed that line.

"What do we do?" asked the octoling, "We have nowhere to go."

"No, we do," I said, "I live in Inkopolis."

The octoling looked at me wide eyed. "You're joking!"

"Nope." I responded , "Can't you see my accomplice and my uniform."

The octoling looked Agent 4 who was still unconscious.

"Why is she knocked out?" asked the octoling.

I realized that the last thing I needed was to tell this octoling that this inkling had an intense xenophobia towards octolings so I dodged the question.

"Long story," I said to the octoling, "She's fine."

The octoling once again seemed at lost for words as if she couldn't believe that all of this was happening. She looked around the shack as if something was hiding and listening in there with us and then at me.

"T-This isn't a joke?" she asked.

"Do I look like I am joking?" I stated.

"Oh cod…" said the octoling bowing her head in deep respect, "Thank you...thank you so much…"

Poor thing. Knowing my experience she's probably been through quite a bit.

"Hey listen," I said calmly, "We can't celebrate just yet so follow my instructions."

The octoling immediately sat up at the ready.

"We're going to plant a device that's going to free everyone. You should stay here where it's safe. If we don't come back try to find our spawn point and get out of here." I instructed.

The octoling simply gave me a determined look and nodded.

"Is the surface really what they say it is?" she asked excitedly, "Is the sun beautiful?"

"It's a lot of great things," I responded, "Just don't do anything rash or we're not going to be able to get back"

"Don't worry_!" smiled the octoling but she was interrupted by a voice in the shed.

"I-I can't see!" yelled Shelly who was awake and groping blindly on the ground.

I realized that Shelly was no longer wearing her glasses which probably meant that I knocked them off her when I hit her into those barrels. She wasn't even facing us.

"I can't believe it..." said the octoling in disbelief, "Is that an actual inkling?"

I could see that Agent 4 visibly tensed up at the sound at an octarian voice and despite being blind, tackled the octoling who began to scream.

"Who is this?!" yelled Agent 4, "Surrender! You hear?!"

I pulled Shelly off the octoling.

"Relax!" I yelled, "She's a friend! It's me Christine!"

"Did you betray me?!" yelled Shelly.

"No!" I yelled, "I knocked you out because you were about to shoot this octoling here. She's not under Ocatvio's control anymore."

The octoling looked visibly scared after being attacked so savagely by Shelly. I admit it unnerved me as well. A casual bystander probably wouldn't even know she was blind.

I turned to the octoling to assure her that nothing was wrong despite the fact I was forcefully wrestling Shelly into the ground, "This Agent 4…" I said, "She's still getting used to octolings this way. Please excuse her rudeness."

The octoling suddenly seemed suspicious, "Are all inklings like this?" she pried, "How do I know your not working for them? How do I know you're even trying to help me?"

"That's ridiculous," I replied, "There's no way I would help another harm us. We've all been through too much."

The octoling still didn't seem entirely convinced but simply gave a silent nod since she had no other options. I noticed that Marie had not said anything during this entire ordeal. I realized the storage shed we were in may have been blocking my com signal.

"Where are we?" said Agent 4, "We need to call off the mission."

I looked at Agent 4 with renewed hatred. I could just tell she was fishing for an excuse to call everything a failure.

"Why?" I demanded.

"I can't see you idiot!" she yelled.

I sighed. Shelly was right. If she couldn't see then we were sunk. It was unusual to see her in such a helpless state but without her glasses she was practically a fish out of water. There was no way we could make it through Octo Canyon now. Actually, we would be lucky to make it back in one piece dragging her in such a state.

I could see the octoling looked upset at Agent 4's statement. She looked betrayed as if we had just offered her salvation and a solution only to take it away just as quickly. It really tore my heart. This was going to be a disaster...unless…

I went for a desperate idea. I shoved my fake hypno shades over Agent 4's eyes.

"What are you_!" yelled Shelly before I could see that she relaxed as her eyesight returned.

Success! She could see! However, that meant that I had lost my disguise.

"These are the shades?" asked Shelly.

"Yes." I said, "It wouldn't be octarian tech if it wasn't also functional."

I was correct. If there was one thing Octavio was consistent with, it was style with a functional twist.

Agent 4 sighed as if slightly disappointed her sight was restored. She got up without even a thank you. The octoling however looked at me with renewed trust.

"See…" I said turning to the octoling, "Everything's going to be _!"

 _Wham! Wham! Wham!_

"Fellow octarians!" said an almost robotic voice of another octoling, "What are you doing lazing in here! Please identify yourselves so you can proceed working."

We were all too loud.

Even though Agent 4's eyes were still obscured by the fake shades...I swear I saw fear in them.

 **What will happen next? Hope you are all enjoying the story! Write, review, and stay fresh!**

 **Fight for all Fiction**

 **-Octoreader**


	44. Chapter 44

**Crap! I realized I made a canon error in this fanfic! Actually, a lot of fanfics starring octarians make this mistake! Octarians don't know inkish (or inkling or whatever) I mean they kind of make different sounds in game which makes it pretty obvious I guess but according to the inkipedia, octolings in Inkopolis have a hard time speaking the language and make a lot of grammar mistakes.**

 **I honestly found this tidbit interesting and I really have no idea why I am putting it here but I just find it so weird how so many Splatoon fanfics including my own have inklings and octolings understanding each other like they have a common language. An octoling that can't even speak the inkling language sounds like an interesting premise for a fanfic. Maybe I'll integrate it into the story somehow or write a seperate one.**

 **Christine P.O.V:**

I analyzed the situation.

Was there a way to bluff out of the situation?

No, it would be really hard for too unmasked octolings to explain being with Agent 4.

Was there any place to hide?

Nope, this shed was unused.

I looked at Agent 4 who actually for once looked legitimately terrified but she was nothing compared to the octoling we befriended who was frantic. I suddenly realized that this might be it. I would be hypnotized again! That would be the end of everything! Everything I worked up for would be gone! Knowing Octavio, he would probably try to hypnotize Shelly as well. That would be disastrous. If the octarians had Agent 4 then it would easily be able to go after the Squidbeak splatoon considering she soloed the entire octarian army.

I tried one last desperate manaveur.

I took the fake shades off Agent 4 and gave them to our friend.

"Put these on…" I whispered.

"What?" she asked.

"Just do it!" I hissed, "We'll be your prisoners."

"That's insane!" she said, "You'll be hypnotized!"

It hit me like a truck. I _**would**_ be hypnotized again. Hopefully, it would be for only a brief moment but if the octoling failed her mission then…

Everything would be gone.

I would lose my life in Inkopolis, my friends, my will, everything.

I wasn't even aware that tears were streaming down my cheeks.

The pounding on the door got louder.

"Open up!" yelled the octoling from outside. "Must be someone we missed..." she muttered to what I could only presume were more octarians, "Get some hypnoshades ready."

"Listen," I whispered trying to not be overcome with emotion so she could here me clearly, "You _**must**_ get this backpack on Octavio's UFO! Just push the button once and then once the transformation is complete, press the other button!"

"What transformation?" said the octoling.

I noticed there was slamming on the door. The octarians outside were trying to break it down. I looked over to Agent 4 who's mouth was agape. She looked like she wanted to say something but she was too scared to utter a sound.

"You'll know it when you see it." I whispered.

"This is stupid!" bluttered Agent 4 who was dangerously close to yelling, "Why can't you do it Christine?"

I was stunned. This was the first time Shelly called me by my real name. It was so unusual seeing Shelly like this. This situation was out of her control. Only an octoling could solve this problem and there was nothing she could do. Her fate was literally in my hands.

"Because I have a hero suit on." I replied, "The octolings may be fooled but no other octarian will be. The other octarians may be stupid enough to blindly fallow Octavio but they're aren't brain dead."

"We can't do this." said Shelly who looked increasingly panicked.

"Yes we can." I replied.

"No!" protested Shelly, "You don't understand I_!"

 _Kerblam!_

A large blast of purple ink shot the door off its hinges. The octoling who we befriended didn't waste a second.

"On the ground prisoners!" she yelled with my fake hypnoshades on.

I immediately put my hands behind my head, pretending to submit. Shelly did likewise. Silently, I slid the metal backpack to the octoling with my foot.

A squad of octolings filed into the room, weapons at the ready. An elite who looked noticeably surprised at what she saw immediately questioned the octoling.

"What is going on here?" she demanded.

"Comrade," replied the friendly octoling doing a perfect hypnotized impression, "I have captured Agent 4 and a rogue octoling. They were hiding in here."

The elite looked at the other octoling in shock then delight.

"This is amazing news!" she yelled, "We shall inform Octavio immediately! Restrain them soldiers!"

I immediately felt multiple octolings roughly grab me and hoist me from the ground. I didn't even bother trying to resist. All I could think about what was about to happen to me. I was going to be hypnotized and potentially never escape it. There was nothing I could do.

Despite this Agent 4 put up a heck of a fight. Before the octarians, could get to her she got up and attempted to grab her hero shot. An octoling managed to shove her against a wall before she was able to. However, that was all the octoling was able to do as Agent 4 gave the octoling a blow across the face, knocking the octoling back. She then proceeded to attack several more octolings before being tackled to the ground, cursing with various octarian specific slurs all the way. I was too busy being jostled roughly to tell but I reckon it took at least ten octolings to bring Agent 4 down.

"Why did you not respond when I knocked?" smiled the hypnotized elite.

"I wanted to make sure Agent 4 and the octoling didn't have anything on them that could compromise your safety comrade," replied the octoling, "I didn't have time to respond."

It was a weak lie but the elite was too giddy with excitement to give it a second thought. She didn't even notice the strange backpack the friendly octoling was carrying. It was unusual for me to see a hypnotized octoling this emotional. The way I've seen it they mostly act like robots but this octoling seemed...happy. That never happened. Perhaps that's how Octavio programmed the shades, the only emotion an octoling feels is happiness and that is only felt when they have successfully served his whim. It was disgusting and soon I would be the same way.

"Ma'am!" said a random octoling in the squad, "I've found some spare hypnoshades!"

"Good!" said the elite, "Put them on the octoling and the agent too to be safe."

I immediately felt the octolings grip on me tighten. I began to panic. It seemed like everything awful that had happened to me was all happening again right here. Pained memories resurfaced and danced over my head. It felt like I was going to die. Then again, I may as well be going to. I was going to feel nothing and see nothing. A fate worse then death. All the friends I made went before my eyes like shooting stars. Leaving as quick as they came. I didn't want all of this to end like this.

I could see an octoling approaching with the shades. I was punching, screaming, kicking, and thrashing.

"Christine!" yelled Agent 4, "This isn't going to work! I sabotaged it! We're_!"

I could just barely see Agent 4 who was struggling against an octoling trying to put the shades on her. She just was barely keeping them away with an arm but the octoling managed to put the shades on her as Shelly's arm slipped, silencing her.

I could barely believe what I was hearing. I knew what "it" was. Agent 4 was still trying to keep it cryptic so the elite wouldn't understand. She sabotaged the device somehow! The stupid inkling couldn't get past her phobia of octolings. I knew it from the beginning! This was really over! My life was gone!

I thought as I tried to shove the shades away, what my last thoughts should be. Somehow my mind wandered to Jessie, the hip girl who gave me a chanve. She was the reason everything turned out so well. She helped me on my feet, gave me a place to stay, and let me on her turf team. I hoped she could get by by without me. She deserves to live without a burden on her heart.

I saw the shades over my eyes. They were so close I could see through them.

I could feel them being shoved on my face.

And then there was...

 **...only** **darkness.**

 **Epilogue of chapter:**

 **Christine's P.O.V:**

I woke up to find myself in a familiar cave.

There was Kelp standing on a rock.

"How disappointing…" she sneered.

"Wait please don't…" I yelled but Kelp didn't want to hear it.

"You should know when to give up," she snorted, "You failed."

"But…" I protested but Kelp had already disappeared...all that was left was a puddle of green ink.

The cave once again continued to collapse much like in prior dreams as green ink filled the cave.

"Then again…" said Kelp as a disembodied voice that resonated throughout the chamber, "Perhaps better days lie ahead…"

And then everything collapsed before I could even utter one coherent sentence.

 **This chapter was a bit emotional to write. Shelly's xenophobia ended up being her undoing. Stay tuned! Please let me know what you think. Stay Fresh!**

 **Fight for all Fiction**

 **-Octoreader**


	45. Chapter 45

**So I actually got a lot of cool responses in the reviews about Splatoon's languages. Honestly, Splatoon has so many mysteries under its threadbare artstyle. That's why I enjoy writing about it so much. It's so open ended and up to interpretation. That's fanfiction gold!**

 **Anyways, I think it would pay for me to clear up any weird stuff that's up to interpretation in my universe. A lot of it's been hinted or touched upon in the story but I felt like some clarification could help?**

 **Q: Are octolings all girls in my universe? What about the boys in the Octo Expanision?**

 **A: Honestly, I hate the octarian designs in the dlc and of how Nintendo kind of defied its own canon. Octarian males exist in my universe, however there considered an anomaly or a genetic mutation. I guess this means octolings reproduce asexually in my universe (the inkpedia says the opposite though) or arise from other octarians reproducing asexually, which is canon. As a result of a low male count, octolings in my universe are generally attracted to those of the same sex.**

 **Q: Is water lethal for inklings and octarians in my universe? Eight was still out of the rain?**

 **A: So I've gone back and forth with this by looking on the internet and I've concluded that inklings can take in modest amounts of water but just can't get absolutely soaked. If you've ever squirted paint out of a tube doing art in real life, you can see that the paint or ink is actually pretty solid or at least has a bit of form to it. However, if you add too much water to paint it just loses its form and dillutes with the water.**

 **What I'm getting at is that ink needs a little water to maintain it's shape and not dry out. Therefore, inklings and octolings in my universe do need to consume water. Staying out in the rain probably isn't healthy for long periods of time and probably hurts a bit but I'd say inklings and octolings need to be absolutely soaked (like trying to swim) to actually harm them.**

 **As far as hygiene, I honestly don't think inklings and octolings actually need to shower. I imagine they get dirt and grit off shifting between forms. The fact that in the game you can actually heal yourself by swimming in your ink (which cosmetically gets enemy ink off you) cements this interpretation for me.**

 **Q: Where's Agent 3?**

 **A: With Cuttlefish. Haven't introduced her...yet.**

 **Q: What's up with Christine and her dreams about Kelp?**

 **A: You'll see…**

 **Q: What's up with the octoling that got sanitized a bunch of chapters ago (chapter 35)?**

 **A: YOU'LL SEE!**

 **Q: Why do other octarians not wear hypno shades?**

 **A: They're stupid and blindly fallow Octavio. See chapter 15 for more on how hypnotization works in my universe!**

 **Q: Will there be more of Jessie's turf team? (Sasha and Kaya)**

 **A: Definitely!**

 **Anyways with that out of the way as my special summary/treat for chapter 45 (it's really been that long, gosh) here's the chapter!**

 **Unamed octoling's P.O.V:**

I couldn't watch. I heard the agent and the octoling screaming at each other but I covered my ears. If I stared, I may start crying which would completely blow my cover.

Both the agent and Christine were hypnotized. Only a few minutes ago, the octoling in the Agent uniform told me everything would be fine. I was going to the surface and they all had a big plan to rescue all the other octolings. Then all of the sudden, the octoling started begging me to help her and now I'm their last hope! I didn't ask for this!

I don't get it at all.

Christine and that inkling were _**agents**_ for cod's sake _ **.**_ A single agent had defeated us twice! They were supposed to be invincible. God-like even. Being in their presence made me feel safe, like they were going to take care of all my problems with their super powered inkling technology or something.

No, they aren't some divine figures. They're just like anyone. Their regular cephalopods who can fail just like anyone else. I looked over and saw the two agents get up and stood at attention. All of the octolings let go of them, there was no need to restrain them. They both had hypno shades on.

And now it was all up to me.

"Good job comrade!" complimented the elite.

I almost forgot what I was doing and nearly slipped up.

"Thanks!" I said _**waaayyy**_ too enthusiastically to be a hypnotized octoling.

The elite fortunately didn't care. She was too...giddy or something? All the octolings seemed unnaturally ecstatic at their success. A side effect of the hypnotization? The hypnotized octolings I saw before I was myself seemed pretty serious. Maybe acting happy wasn't the worst mistake to make

"We're going to go to Octavio's UFO to present these two as gifts to Octavio," giggled the elite like a little kid, "Perhaps you will get a promotion."

The elite pointed at my red tentacles as she giggled some more. Strangely, I got a bit nostalgic. I had always wanted a promotion. I envied all the elites and strived to be promoted in the octarian army. I mean that was before...you know...the hypnoshades happened.

"I cannot go to Octavio," I commanded like a superior, "I was told to put this device away first,"I said pointing to the metal backpack I had on my back.

The previously happy-go-lucky octoling immediately snapped back to her regular serious demeanor. Her smile faded.

"What device?" she said suspiciously.

I was completely winging it. I was surprised at how well I was lying.

"This!" I said pointing to the backpack as if I knew every detail, "Octavio told me that the agents would have a device with them."

I thought that acting like I was a superior would ensure the elite wouldn't question me but I realized how transparent my lie must be. Why would I be one a special mission if I was an elite? Why wouldn't I bring the device to Octavio himself? Doubly, why didn't he promote me to an elite for such a large job?

"Oh, I see comrade." said the elite obediently as if what I had said made perfect sense.

I realized then that it didn't matter what I said. For all the elite knew, I was just another hypnotized octoling. Therefore, there would be no way I could lie. I could literally say "Slapalapadingdong!" and they would believe me.

"Allow me to take the prisoners." I ordered slyly, "This is top secret and the fact that you know unfortunately means I'll have to report you to Octavio."

"Of course comrade." responded the elite obediently. In that moment, I could easily see how mindless she was. She had no sense of self preservation. No sense of free will. She did not care if she was reported. She was just another pawn that Octavio would use to get what he wanted. She was expendable.

"Return to your duties and do not speak of anyone about this." I commanded.

"As you wish comrade." replied the octoling before turning to her squad and shouting, "Move out troops!"

And just like that I was alone with the two hypnotized agents. I looked around. There was nobody.

I looked at the shack. I couldn't hide there. The door was blown off. I looked for a nearby building. There was none. That meant I had to look somewhere quietly. What I needed to do needed to be done in private.

"You two!" I said to the two hypnotized agents, "Follow me quietly."

The two agents obeyed almost robotically and I peered around a nearby corner with them in tow. Nobody again. Just metal bridges suspended over blackness. We walked over out into the open and I noticed a bridge written in octarian, "Danger!"

This was convenient. The bridge itself was long, so long that I couldn't see its end. It continued in a straight line and seemed to continue away from all the buildings and other bridges over an abyss. It looked really rusty, like it wasn't used anymore.

I debated but there wasn't much time to think. Do I risk falling to my death to find an isolated location? Impulsively, I took a few steps on the bridge. It rattled but seemed pretty secure.

I looked at the two agents and commanded, "Be careful on this bridge. You could fall."

Again, the two agents just nodded their heads and began to cross behind me. Not a word was said.

So we crossed. The bridge seemed to last forever as the main structures and buildings got farther and farther. Soon we were out alone over a darkness with no end in sight. All that broke the silence was the rhythmic sound of boots on metal.

 _Clank. Clank. Clank._

 _Clank. Clank. Clank._

 _KERACK!_

Part of the metal floor gave way from under me. I nearly fell. I found myself with both hands gripping the railings, one on each side, as my feet flailed below me. Just narrowly avoiding death.

I couldn't help myself. I screamed, "HELP! HELP!"

I felt a sudden force pick me up and saw Christine as she hoisted me up.

"Are you all right comrade?" she asked once I was standing.

Christine spoke to me without emotion. It seemed so weird with the way she was giving a concerned question with such a stiff voice. It was lucky she was there though. We were very far from the rest of Cephalopod HQ.

"I'm...fine." I said trying to still be emotionless and commanding. These agents were still Octavio's puppets after all. They could just as easily turn on me for all I knowif I didn't keep my act up.

We continued on gingerly. Soon the path way ended and I could not believe where it led.

It went straight into the side of the sky.

More accurately, it went straight into the TV screens that made the sky. I soon felt longing, I wanted to be where the real sky was. This was just a reminder of how fake everything down here was The real sky had a big bright sun to party under, not a screen. Christine told me that the surface was waiting after this was all done. Better get this over with then.

We entered into the panels and soon found ourselves in some sort of control room but it was completely in disuse. It looked to be some sort of maintenance shack behind the screens. There was some sort of viewer screen that looked cracked and rusted. Trash littered the room and only a dim emergency light illuminated it. It probably was used to take care of the fake sky.

I don't know why this was abandoned. Judging by our trip, maybe the path here was just too dangerous. Then again, most structures down here are.

I turned to the agents. I only had one shot at this. I needed to be able to do this quickly now that we were in a room safely away from anyone else.

I quickly charged at the agents and ripped the shades of their faces.

It worked. The agents were so unsuspecting that they didn't even have time to stop me. They stood there obedient even in the last few seconds.

The two agents stared for a second then immediately snapped to their sense.s

The inkling immediately threw up. Christine fell on the ground as if gasping for air and immediately began to weep...

 **Chrisine's P.O.V:**

Oh cod! Free! Oh cod…

I fell on the ground disoriented. Something happened! I was aware. I was free.

I looked around and noticed I was in some weird abandoned room and I saw the other octoling that we met standing over me. I looked up at her.

"You-You saved us…" I gasped. I couldn't believe it.

"Not really," she replied, "I was able to bluff my way out and get you to where I could take these off safely. I wasn't able to set up the device yet."

Suddenly, I began to weep. The whole ordeal that I had been through had just set in. I remembered those horrible moments before the hypnoshades came on. I felt like I was going to die. It was the one thing I never dreamed of happening again did. Being hypnotized again was too traumatic. I probably looked like an idiot in front of the other octoling, crying like a baby.

I just wanted to go home! To relax with Jessie and my friends. And that freedom nearly was taken from me! This mission was taking to much of a toll.

Then I remembered…

" _ **You…**_ " I glared at Shelly.

She betrayed us. The mission was compromised because of her sabatoging the device. If it weren't for that octoling manually saving us I would have been hypnotized forever, living like a slave.

Shelly looked up at me with that stupid hostile glare that she always gave. She didn't looked like she cared but she knew what she did.

I'm not sure if that's what did it but I was sick of it. I was sick of her making my life miserable.

Within seconds, I struck Shelly across the jaw…

 **And that's the end of the chapter. Nothing much to say.**

 **Fight for All Fiction**

 **-Octoreader**


	46. Chapter 46

**So I've really been debating lately. I started another Splaton fic Kirsikka but really am not feeling the story. I'm going to make a new fic soon...probably. I'm gonna continue this one of course. I'm kinda tempted to do another octarian related story but I feel that this story is really the best I can do and I can't see myself doing any better (there's actually some pretty good stuff in the future by the way)**

 **I feel I may want to explore an octoling/inkling hybrid. I haven't seen this idea thrown around a lot and I think it could be interesting…**

 **Anyways that's what I've been thinking. Enjoy this chapter.**

 **Christine's P.O.V:**

I immediately heard the octoling next to me scream as I attacked Shelly. I didn't care. Shelly needed her karma. This was what she deserved. I was showing the ugly side of myself. I was cursing in octarian and continued pummeling her relentlessly as I got on top of her. All of the anger that I kept bottled up for so long was spilling out. A more reasonable voice inside my head told me this was jeopardizing the mission but I just snapped after being hypnotized. It was too much for me to handle.

Somehow, Shelly slipped out from under me despite all the punishment and did some sort of grappling reversal. With martial expertise, she grabbed my head and used it to pull me to the ground as she tackled me. I completely forgot to take into account how strong Shelly was. She was the best turfer I ever seen and she had the muscle to back it up. I realized how utterly helpless I was as she loomed above me. Not only that, she looked absolutely enraged. This was a Shelly I never saw.

" _ **This**_ is for taking Marie and Callie away from me octoling!" she yelled as she slammed me in the face.

" _ **This**_ is for my parents!" she said as she struck me again.

My vision was starting to get fuzzy. If this kept on, I was going to lose consciousness. My face hurt. I probably broke a nose or something.

"And _**this**_ is for ruining Inkopolis!" she yelled as she hit me again.

My nerves were begging me to pass out. One more hit was all it took to do me in.

"And _**this**_ is…" Shelly paused and her face lost all it's anger.

She looked...calm? Her expression was of silent determination...much like the one Marie always wore, which was confusing. I noticed that her hand was shaking. I would have used the opportunity to overpower her but my head was spinning so much that I probably couldn't even lift myself up if she wasn't on top of me.

Shelly began to breathe heavily and her fist began to shake even more as if she was trying to put her fist through concrete. Suddenly, her neutral expression morphed into a frown, her eyebrows become raised, and fat tears began spilling down her cheeks.

I was so confused.

"Damn you…" she almost whispered as she got off me.

"Damn you! You're right!" she yelled began sobbing uncontrollably, "Damn you! You were freaking right!"

I looked at her bleary eyed but managed to ask, "What...are you talking about?"

Shelly looked over at me as she was kneeling beside me and her eyes lit up in surprise. I probably looked pretty bad considering I was punched in the face three times. She looked over at herself in disgust as if she just realized what she had done.

"Oh cod…" she sobbed, "It's just awful!"

I realized she was talking about the hypnotization.

"And I...I turned myself off to you...I thought you all deserved it…" she said before giving another look at you, "...and I did _**this**_ to you?! Oh cod…"

I said nothing. I could hardly think. Talking was too much for me right now.

"Oh cod, you went through all this and I did all of this to you...all this time..." she continued, "I...I'm sorry! Beat me up! Shove me off of that bridge if you want to! I'm sorry!"

I'm not sure if she was apologizing for. Was it for beating me up? Or trying to kick me out of Inkopolis? Or was it for sabotaging the mission? I was still angry. It took her this long to realize she wasn't on the right side? Even after I tried to show her countless upon countless times that I was a decent cephalopod?

Instead of yelling at her, I unintentionally asked, "Why?"

I don't know why I asked. Maybe it was my aching head but I couldn't comprehend what could make someone go to these lengths to be this cruel yet still believe they were in the right.

"I...I…" she began as if not knowing where to start, "I felt...threatened."

She continued, "After my parents died, I stumbled upon the Squidbeak splatoon and became an agent. I saved Inkopolis and Callie. I was a hero. Inklings were good and octolings were bad was my logic."

She breathed heavily and began to cry once more, "I...I thought you were a freeloader. Even if you were hypnotized...I thought you were just a selfish octoling who didn't know her place after losing the turf war."

She stuttered and was barely able to stutter out, "I...I...n-never saw...you as a...as a...as a person."

"I saw you as an intruder." she continued, "You started turning my friends against me. Marie and Callie who were my best friends...my _**only**_ friends thought I was crazy. Other inklings started to think I was ridiculous after word got that you saved an inkling. I felt you were trying to ruin my world. I...I never thought about what you went through."

Shelly sobbed again and suddenly wailed, "Oh cod I have blood on my hands!"

I was also perplexed. What did she mean?

"All of those octarians I splatted!" she almost screamed, "They were just like you. They were all just puppets. They didn't ask to do all this and I...I…I..."

She finally able to get it out but it was just barely coherent, "I enjoyed it…" she sobbed, "I'm a monster. Just do what you want."

I took a while to respond. Partially because my head was killing me and partially because I didn't know what to say. Shelly felt threatened by me which I can sort of understand. She probably was an orphan so being hired by two celebrities probably meant a lot to her. Even if it was unintentional, I did end up driving a wedge between them...

That doesn't excuse anything of course. I'm not sure if I'm ready to forgive her. Maybe I won't ever. This isn't a fairy tale. A lot of what she did to me was evil and wrong. Not to mention the entire mission is compromised. Still, it was good to know that I could finally not have her as an enemy. With Shelly out of the way, the other inklings in Inkopolis may be more trusting to me...and that's already begun! Perhaps I can truly be at ease and just enjoy Inkopolis without all of this drama.

Still this wasn't a time to be looking towards the future yet. I still had to figure out if we could still get the mission done. I still had to save Kelp and all the other octarians. I couldn't help but wonder about Kelp. She kept appearing in this incredibly lucid dreams. It was beginning to scare me a bit. It felt like I was being haunted.

I managed to stand up and the ache in my head began to subside. I looked at my reflection in the giant broken monitor of the room. I had a mark on my eye that was beginning to turn black and I had a bloody nose. All in all, it wasn't that bad. The ache was already subsiding. Hopefully, I didn't have a concussion but as long as I could stand I was going to see this through. I couldn't do that with Shelly blubbering. I also couldn't help but feel the smallest bit sorry for her. It was small but it was there all the same.

"Listen," I said, "Your drawing a lot of conclusions real fast. You need more time to take this all in. That should be for later though."

Shelly sniffed and looked up before I added, "If you really sorry about what you did then how about you do something about it. What did you do to the device?"

A thought popped into my head. Why were our coms silent? Did Shelly do something about that to? I was about to ask that but Shelly spoke up.

"I.." sniffing Shelly before raising her head and staring suddenly, "Where's the other octoling?"

I looked around the room. She wasn't there. She was probably scared and ran out but there was only one exit…

Shelly stopped crying. "The bridge," she said.

I cursed in octarian for the second time today. She went running on the bridge. I couldn't remember much from being hypnotized but just by looking at it, I got the vibe that it was pretty dangerous.

Shelly and I immediately exited the room.

 **And FINALLY Shelly realizes the errors in her ways. I really put time into thinking of how this would go down. I think Shelly was pretty sure she knew what she was doing was wrong. Then again, most racists probably do, even when faced with overwhelming evidence.**

 **Shelly definitely felt threatened by Christine because she did end up turning her world upside down and stealing her friends and thunder. Part of that was because Shelly's hatred toward Christine was turning into an obsession which in turn caused her to distance herself from Callie and Marie. Still, it's good to see Shelly finally realizing after forty-something chapters that it was so insensitive of her to see octarians as pathetics losers who didn't know their place and we're trying to hog Inkopolis' fresh lifestyle. In reality, as Shelly learned, what the octarians have been going through is horrible and isn't something you can just say, "Tough." to.**

 **The question remains, what did Shelly do to the Killer Wail?**


	47. Chapter 47

**The long wait is over! I give you all an update! It's really ironic because I had two people asking me for updates the day I was gonna put this out but it's really nice to see that people care.**

 **So I'm working on a new fic now and I must say it is really coming along. It is another Splatoon fic and I have been splitting my attention between it and Fresh Out of Octo Canyon. It's called Two Races and I am hoping it will give people something to chew on while they wait for updates.**

 **Christine's P.O.V:**

How could I have been so stupid?

That octoling could be a mile down that bridge for all I knew. I was stupid letting my emotions get the best of me.

Fortunately, the octoling was not half way down the bridge. She was only about twenty feet down but she was a blubbering mess and was dangerously leaning on the rusty railing, which I was sure would not support her weight. I imagine Shelly and I must have really scared her

"Are you okay?" I called out.

The octoling glared at me accusingly. "What does it look like?" she blubbered, "You started clobbering each other like animals! I don't want to do this anymore!"

I couldn't help but return the sentiment. Ever since this whole hypnotization and near failure of the mission, we had all basically just fell apart. None of us wanted to continue. We all just needed to calm down and hit the reset button.

"Hey," I said calmly, "Why don't you just come in here? Let's all just take a breather and get reorganized!"

"I don't want to!" yelled the octoling like a stubborn child.

"Listen…" I said more seriously, "What you're doing is dangerous! Your going to get hurt if you try crossing that bridge alone! Everything is going to be fine, promise!"

The octoling looked in the other direction as if weighing her options. She reluctantly came over to safety and said nothing. Shelly and I didn't either. It was better that way. We were all just kind of in shock, really. We all went back to the safety of the room and sat on the floor.

It took a couple of minutes before I had the nerve to speak up…

"Okay…" I said taking a deep breath, "We all just need to calm down."

Shelly said nothing and just stared at the floor. The octoling simply glared at me.

"Agent 3 and I had a... _ **dispute**_ **.** We're good now. The killer whale is broken and we need to see if we can fix it."

While I was saying all this I glared at Shelly to make sure she stayed quiet. I didn't want to go and explain to this octoling about Shelly's racism or that she tried to compromise the mission. I didn't need her panicking anymore than she was already. Panicked people do stupid things and stupid things lead to problems.

"Now Shelly," I said politely, "Why don't you take over since you're better at mechanics than I am and explain to our friend what's wrong with the Killer Wail."

That was a lie. I was probably miles more a mechanic than her. All of us octolings love tech but considering that Shelly was talented enough to single handedly defeated the entire octarian army, it was a convincing lie.

"Well…" said Shelly nervously and I swear there were tears in her eyes but she hid them. "The tape is missing. It got ripped out by something."

"The tape?" I asked.

Shelly sighed sadly, "The killer whale has a tape that plays the song. It got ripped out so the song won't play."

Oh cod. That sounded bad. I was hoping it was just simple vandalism. That was something I could fix. Things broke in Octo Canyon all the time. The bridge that we took here is a testament to that. Anyone who lived down here was responsible for taking care of their own equipment, which included repairing it. I can't tell you how many times my octobrush broke. In contrast, my inkling made octobrush never broke once.

"May I see?" I asked with a sense of dread.

Shelly grabbed the backpack and placed it on the floor before noting, "Better stay back…"

I could see why she said that because there was deafening screech as metal practically exploded out of the backpack. The metal began to fold over onto itself and soon a giant killer whale was formed.

First off, the thing was absolutely _**massive.**_ It was hitting the ceiling off the room but for all the technological marvel of being able to smoosh such a large contraption in a small metal backpack, it looked like it came out of a junkyard. Metal was splayed in odd places and sometimes stray parts were just sticking out randomly. I noticed something odd though…

The giant "bowl" of the wail had another bowl of a much smaller one.

"What's this?" I asked Shelly.

"I think they built this thing on a modified killer wail that Eight and Off the Hook used to save Inkopolis somehow. I don't know the whole story,"

I felt a ping of anger. She would know if she actually bothered to get to know Eight and put aside the prejudice.

"Let me see where the tape is." I instructed.

Shelly opened a panel to reveal where a small tape should have been placed but it was missing, of course. Shelly ripped it out. It was just an empty space surrounded by wires.

My heart sunk. There was nothing I could do, the mission was a failure. We had no music. I glanced over at Shelly. I could just tell from the look on her face she was feeling extreme amounts of guilt. I almost felt sorry for her but much of that was stifled by anger. This was all her fault after all

"Excuse me…" said the octoling who had been silent all this time, "What is this?"

The octoling was pointing to what looked like a mic sticking haphazardly among the scrap metal. I immediately went over to investigate.

"Wait this thing has a mic?!" I asked.

It was just a plain old mic with an on/off switch that was thrown haphazardly among the metal. It looked very out of place and it was barely noticeable. Why didn't Marie tell us about this?

"It doesn't work." said Shelly dismissing the thought, "I think Eight yelled into it or something."

"But did it work before?" I asked.

"Well...I guess it did?" said Shelly who looked confused.

I began to feel a glimmer of hope. There may be one way to do this.

"I need tools." I stated.

Shelly just looked even more baffled, "Are you saying you can fix it? Why would I have tools and what good would fixing the mic do?"

I ignored her. I looked around the room. There was the viewer screen, a broken control pad, and various debress. There had to be a toolbox here somewhere. It would be foolish not to considering how much octarians have to repair stuff. Then again, I didn't think this place was in use anymore.

Fortunately, I found under the control pad a small red box with a latch. My heart practically skipped a beat. It could be anything. It could just be a fire extinguisher or a spare parts for all I knew. I needed tools. If there weren't tools then we would have to go back and steal some or give up. I said a quick prayer and opened the box…

Miraculously, it was a toolbox...and a good one at that!. None of this stuff was cheap. Everything I needed was here. Spare ink tanks, power egg chargers, circuit boards, and even a few small power tools. This was perfect! I could alter this things to my hearts content, maybe even reprogram it if I really needed to!

Both Shelly and the octoling we're looking at me as if I was insane. I returned the favor.

"Don't you realize what this means?" I asked, "If this thing used to have a working mike we can just connect it again! We can fix this thing!"

"I'm not sure singing Calamari Inktation would work." responded Shelly, "We're not near as good as the Squid Sisters."

"We won't have to," I explained, "I got Calamari Inktation on my phone."

That's true. Jessie practically begged me to download some Squid Sister albums on my squidphone. It was alright, although I much prefer the octarian accent in Off the Hook's vocals.

Shelly breathed a sigh of relief, "You really think we can fix it?"

"Probably," I responded, "But it will take some time since I'm not familiar with inkling tech."

The octoling was absolutely beaming, "I can help!"

"This could work everyone," I announced, "This could really work. We're probably gonna be up all night so we'll work in shifts."

Shelly looked slightly disappointed, "Is there anything I can do?"

"You can just stay out of the way." I said with a bit more of a barbed edge than I wished. Not to mention I completely contradicted myself about Shelly being knowledgeable about mechanics.

I looked over at the octoling and fortunately she was already too interested in dissecting the killer whale. I immediately joined in and soon became just as enchanted. We both became invested in our work. Us octolings are geeks about technology. Nothing would make two octolings happier than working on some new inkling tech. So despite the circumstances, I began to border on enjoyment..

Shelly, however, just sat with this blank look on her face. She had a lot to think about and I imagine the guilt must be unbearable. I tried to ignore her as I exchanged rapid witty banter about tech with the octoling

"Will these wires route to the right board…" I asked.

"Definitely, I already told you this board controls the command module for the mic." she responded.

"This inkling tech is a lot smoother than ours, isn't it?" I inquired.

"Definitely!" responded my friend, "Is all inkling stuff this quality?"

"Yup."

"I just can't wait to get to Inkopolis!" she sighed, "I'm really sorry for getting angry earlier."

"Don't mention it." I replied, "I acted immaturely for an agent."

Good. I got that weight off my back. I still felt guilty about scaring her.

"Hey," I added, "I never got your name in all this chaos."

"It's Uno." responded the octoling happily.

"Uno?" I wondered aloud as I carefully undid a circuit board, "That's an odd name."

"It's from some old human language," she explained, "It's called Spanish I think. I think it means "One""

"Hmm." I muttered as I continued to undo the circuit board I was working on. It was becoming stubborn and I was being careful not to break it.

We stopped talking for about an hour as the work got more involved. We had to be really careful not to break anything delicate. Working with circuit boards is very demanding and requires careful.

"Hey," said Uno after a while as she yawned, "I'm going to get some rest, wake me up in a few hours."

I looked over my shoulder and saw that Shelly was already asleep. I lost track of time in all the busywork. We must have at least been working a few hours. I guess it made sense to start working in shifts.

"Sure." I replied.

"Okay," she said as she laid down, "Goodnight."

She was out almost immediately and almost snored as loud as Jessie.

After working for another hour, my mind started to wander. Jessie must be starting to get worried. The mission was taking longer than expected. I told her I would be only gone after dinner and I had no way of communicating with her. I couldn't even get the Squid Sisters to tell her because our coms were down. I then began to wonder if Shelly sabotaged the coms to. She probably would have said it already. I'll question her later.

I also began to chillingly recount being hypnotized. It was really scary and the gravity of our previous ordeal was now starting to set in. I really did almost become a mindless slave forever. I remembered vaguely disturbing dreams about Kelp during that time. Her increasingly frequent presence in my dreams was starting to worry me. Perhaps I was thinking about her too much. I really wanted this to be over with.

But what if we succeeded? We could save every octoling out there! They would all be able to enjoy Inkopolis! It would be a new era!

My mind then began to wonder at home. I missed all my friends. I missed Jessie and her team. I missed Lavender. I missed my girlfriend. I missed my apartment. I missed my couch.

My couch...sleep…

I feel *yawn* really sleepy. Want to sleep at home…Could really use...some...covers...Should really be *yawn* focusing. Got to...finish...

Before I knew it, I collapsed on the killer whale with thoughts of home dancing in my head.

 **Looks like everyone has gotten reorganized but they still have to complete the mission. Octavio's UFO is going to be tough…**

 **Either way, thank you guys for the support! I hope you all enjoy whatever you're doing and Stay Fresh!**

 **Fight for all Fiction.**

 **-Octoreader**


	48. Chapter 48

**Hey everyone! Been working on two races for a few chapters so I'm gonna give another chapter. We are literally a few chapters from concluding this portion of the story. I really appreciate all the support I've been getting for both this fic and my new one, Two Races. You all are the best!**

 **Shelly's P.O.V:**

I couldn't sleep. I faked it while the octoling named Uno and Christine worked.

There was so much I had to think about and I couldn't help but feel aweful. I had been a hrroible person. I drove Christine to the breaking point. I treated her like a subclass race who needed to know her place. In reality, she experienced something horrible. I never even dreamed at how horrible hypnotization felt like. That fact that I could just... _ **dismiss**_ something as aweful as that. It disgusted me.

My heart was in the wrong place. I thought being on the Squidbeak Splatoon helped me make up for my parents' death. I just tarnished it instead. I splatted...I can't even imagine how many octolings. I mean, it was necessary to save Inkopolis...right? Even so, there were times I made it a challenge to splat every enemy in a level. They were innocent, truly innocent, and I...enjoyed it.

And Callie and Marie were as good as gone. I remember the first time I had met them. It really turned my life around. I was just a kid who never had a true family and isolated themselves from others. Nobody really liked me. Meeting Marie for the first time was one of the best moment in my life. Knowing a famous celebrity actually wanted something to do with a squid like me was amazing. I always could rely on them as friends.

But the instances of late...really turned me into a monster. I treated them like dirt. I wasn't sure if our friendship would ever recover. They would probably kick me from the Splatoon. My heart couldn't bear to think about it.

Soon, I heard snoring and saw that Christine had fallen asleep on what looked like her shift. Should I wake her up? It would be akward...but we had a job to do. Social differences can go to the wayside. The killer whale needs to be fixed. I just wish I could help...

"Hey." I said sitting up and tapping her shoulder.

Christine nearly jumped with a high pitched squell before realizing it was me.

"What?" she said to me. The grogginess in her voice did not disguise her obvious hatred.

"Uhm...sorry…" I began, "You looked like you fell asleep on shift."

"Is that so?" she said almost sarcastically as she brusshed away a stray tentacle that was over her face before getting back to work.I couldn't help but notice her eye I had punched had become a deep black.

I said nothing and simply sat up awkwardly for several minutes. The only sound was Uno's snoring and the silent tinkering of tools.

"What did you do to the coms?" said Christine suddenly without even looking up.

"Nothing! Honest!" I replied. I had wondered what had happened to them.

Christine then turned around and eyed me very carefully, "You certain?"

"I am certain."

"Well," she said returning to her job, "We probably just lost them when we crossed that bridge. The signal probably doesn't reach there and I imagine they shut up when we initiated our fake capture."

I looked down at my com. How was I ever going to explain all this to Callie and Marie?

"I guess…" I began, "When we're back in range we should...talk…"

Christine stopped working.

"I don't think you should." she said as she turned her head to glare at me.

"Why not?" I asked trying to keep cool and not burst with sadness.

"You're going to break down or Marie will probably cancel the mission because she doesn't trust you." she replied, "Either way the mission won't go as planned. Don't."

"I-I'm not sure how I'm going to break it to_."

"Just shut up." said Christine softly.

I was taken aback. Christine was nothing like I saw her before. She looked royally pissed to say the least. Really mad.

"I'm sorry?" I pried carefully.

"I'm telling you to shut up." she said, "I don't care about your drama with Callie and Marie."

She sighed and resumed with her work once more.

"Christine...I'm sorry." I said sadly.

"You think this is some fairy tale?" Christine said, "You think I'm just going to play nice and pretend nothing happened because you said, 'I'm sorry.' Not how the world works."

I was stunned. I felt the smallest bit of anger at her remarks but it was quickly stifled with guilt. She was acting cruelly but it was because of me. I only had myself to blame. She could be as angry as she wanted.

"Go to sleep." said Christine, "I don't want to talk to you anymore."

I wish there was something I could do to make things right but there was nothing. I was simply trapped in this abyss of guilt.

It took a while but I eventually went into a fitful sleep. I would need the rest anyway. As soon as that Killer Whale was fixed we would continue with the plan. Helping it succeed would be the least I could do

 **I think this Octarian portion of the story will be resolved very soon. It looks like Christine has had enough. It feels a little out of character for her but Christine is no saint. Shelly has basically tormented her since chapter 3. We have some cool stuff coming up! Stay tuned!**


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